


We'll Get Through This Together

by Dreamer1701



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Adventure & Romance, Camp Half-Blood (Percy Jackson), Camp Jupiter (Percy Jackson), Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Danger, Dreams, M/M, No prophecy, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Quests, Romance, Talking to Ghosts, solangelo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 00:41:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 39,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29269695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamer1701/pseuds/Dreamer1701
Summary: After the three days in the infirmary, Nico and Will have become close friends. But somehow, Nico has this strange feeling in his stomach when he's with the son of Apollo. He couldn't tell Will about his feelings, could he? And what would happen when another war was going to come and it didn't look good for both Camps? SOLANGELO
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Comments: 29
Kudos: 38





	1. Explosions In The Morning

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone, I've decided to post my Solangelo story here as well. I've originally posted it on another platform, but maybe people here would like to read it as well. By now, it has 17 chapters and I'm still writing, I think it will reach about thirty in the end. It would be great if you'd let me know if you like it, then I could also post everything here. 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico 

_His dreams were dark. Very dark, to be exact. But that wasn't a surprise since Nico was a son of Hades, the God of the Underworld._

_He saw many different things; the imagines just appeared like flashes of light. And between them there was darkness. Darkness and silence. It didn't bother Nico very much, even if there were just a few moments in which he could sleep without seeing bad things, he appreciated them. Normally, something like that didn't happen._

_First, there was Bianca, his sister who'd died a long time ago (at least it felt like a long time to Nico). He saw her laughing and smiling about something he'd said and she just looked happy. There was this look on her face which he hadn't been able to interpret until now. It was love and it showed how much she'd cared about Nico._

_Then the image changed and he was in Camp Half-Blood, some time before the war against Kronos and the other Titans had started. The other Demigods hadn't liked him very much and he hadn't really cared about it. He could have tried to make some friends, but it was easier to push the others away and stay alone with his thoughts and feelings. Then, there was no one who could ask stupid questions._

_Suddenly, he saw Camp Jupiter again and the time he'd spent there. It had been nearly the same as in Camp Half-Blood, but Nico hadn't cared about the Demigods there as well. The only thing which made him feel uneasy was to pretend that he was a son of Pluto and not Hades. But since when had he cared about his father? Never._

_And then there was the war against Gaea and the Giants. Nico saw their faces and remembered their voices. And then there was Tartarus. The darkness there had been different from everything he'd seen or felt before. It was like a silent evil which was creeping towards your heart slowly..._

A loud explosion made Nico wake up from his dream. The ground of the Hades Cabin in Camp Half-Blood was shaking and he could hear someone cry out. It didn't sound as if it was close to his Cabin, but he stood up quickly and searched some clothes he could wear anyway. As usual, he decided for a black t-shirt and a jeans and when he looked into the mirror, Nico saw that he was very pale. There were dark rings under his eyes and it seemed as if he hadn't slept for many days. Which was - somehow - true.

When he opened the door to leave the building, he was blinded by the sun that had just appeared above Half-Blood Hill. Nico resisted the urge to take a step back again and looked around for a few seconds. After the days in the infirmary, Nico had begun to feel more comfortable here at camp. He knew that he had friends and was accepted. His role as Head Counselor of the Hades Cabin gave him a task to do and even if it was a calm day, there was always something going on.

And then there was Will. Will Solace, the blond, blue-eyed son of Apollo who used to confuse Nico very much. During the battle against Gaea, Will had done everything to show Nico that he was accepted at Camp Half-Blood and that he should stay there - which he had done in the end. He had also been furious about him using his powers too much (for example by shadow travelling a very tall statue hundreds of miles) and it seemed as if he cared for him. At least Nico thought that since he had to stay in the infirmary for three days because of Will. To his surprise, the days had been over far too soon and after that, Nico found himself visiting Will very often.

Somehow, talking to Will made him... happy. And that was something Nico hadn't been in a very long time. With him, he could just forget the world and all the darkness which used to surround him. It hadn't taken them long to become best friends. But was it normal that you had this strange feeling in your stomach when you were talking to your best friend? And that you felt kind of electrified when he touched you?

"Hey Nico!" A voice called and ripped him out of his thoughts. Slowly, Nico turned around to see who was walking towards him. Jason Grace was smiling widely, but something in his posture told him that something was wrong.

"Jason, what's up?" Nico asked, nodding at the son of Jupiter. "You look like something happened. Is it about the explosion I've heard some time ago?"

Slowly, Jason raised his eyebrows and his smile turned into an unbelieving grin. "You look like you haven't slept for ages, and yet you are able to see through me so easily?" He shook his head and began to walk towards the Hephaestus Cabin, making a gesture for Nico to follow him. "You're right, by the way. I've heard the noise too and I'm on my way to see what's going on there."

"You know that you're not responsible for it, right?"

"Jason always thinks that he's responsible for everything!" Now both Jason and Nico turned around to see Piper leaving her cabin. She kissed Jason on the cheek quickly and when she looked at Nico, she frowned. Of course she turned away so that he couldn't see the look which appeared on her face now. However, he could imagine what it looked like very well.

"You're talking about Percy, not me." Jason murmured and Nico couldn't stop himself from grinning. It was true, Percy always thought that he was able to deal with everything that happened at camp.

"No, I think I know my boyfriend." Piper began and it looked like she wanted to say something else as well, but the sound of another explosion stopped her from doing that.

They headed towards the Hephaestus Cabin quickly, just to see that dark smoke was coming out of the doors and windows. Apparently, everyone had already left the building since many people stood in front of it and didn't seem to know what to do now.

"That's all your fault!" A tall, brown-haired boy said loudly and pointed at another son of Hephaestus who was covered in black dust.

"My fault? I think you were the one who wanted to start the experiment today and not tomorrow like it was planned!"

"You said that it would work very well, even if we hadn't made the final tests -"

"I said that? And why can't I remember it? I think that you were the one who said it!"

Piper, Jason and Nico exchanged looks quickly and in a silent agreement, they began to walk backwards without stopping to look at the sons of Hephaestus who were shouting at each other very loudly. This wasn't something they wanted to chime in. Sometimes, it was better to leave them alone than to try helping them because it only made things worse, not better.

"What happened here?" This time, Nico didn't have to turn around to see who was speaking. Will sounded worried and he understood why. The son of Apollo always took care of injured people and the sound of the explosion had made him think that something bad had happened.

"Nothing too bad." Nico muttered and finally turned around to look at his friend. Will's hair was a complete mess and it looked like he'd just jumped out of bed. He was wearing a white t-shirt together with jeans and Nico realized that he wasn't wearing shoes. "An experiment went wrong and now they're trying to decide who's responsible for it."

"That happens very often." Jason added and he and Will exchanged a smile.

"So I've hurried up without having a reason for it?" Will asked and raised his eyebrows at Nico again, who couldn't stop himself from grinning any longer.

"Apparently." He answered and pointed at his feet. "I think you can still put on your shoes before breakfast."

At that comment, Will rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "You seem to be in a good mood, Death Boy." He muttered. However, he grinned as well and without thinking about it twice, the two of them began to walk towards the Apollo Cabin slowly. "But I don't like the way you look. When was the last time you've slept?"

At that question, the strange feeling in Nico's stomach returned, but he tried not to show it. "Last night. Not very good, I have to admit, but I've slept. You should know that being a son of Hades doesn't mean that I dream of sheep and the sun at night."

"Very funny, Nico. Really very funny." Will murmured and shook his head. "You look really bad. And I think I know what might help you."

Now Nico looked at his friend questioningly and Will's lips twitched. "After I've put on a pair of shoes, we'll go and have breakfast together."

"You must be very brave when you want to sit at my table. Normally, people avoid to come too close to a person who's as scary as I am."

"I don't think you're scary." Will replied immediately and turned away quickly when he realized how he'd sounded. Nevertheless, Nico noticed that he blushed and that made his grin grow even wider.

"Well, then I think we should go." When Will wanted to change the direction and walk towards the middle of the camp, Nico raised his hand to make him stop again. "After you've put on some shoes, Solace. It's kind of disgusting to eat without having shoes on."

With a sigh, Will shook his head and turned around again to enter his cabin. "You're going to be the death of me, Nico!" He shouted, but Nico thought that he'd seen an amused sparkle in his eyes.


	2. Dream On, Sunshine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so I noticed that the first chapter is a little short. I'm just going to post the second one as well!
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

"Nico, you're going to be in my team during capture the flag!" A voice announced loudly and both Will and Nico looked up to see Percy and Annabeth walking towards their table. They were holding hands and Annabeth grinned triumphantly, so Nico supposed that she was on her boyfriend's team as well. Which wasn't a surprise since she'd played against him last time - and won (Nico had been on her team, together with Jason).

Seeing them together didn't bother Nico anymore, so he just grinned at them and nodded. "That's great! Who else will be with us?"

"Aphrodite and Ares." Percy replied immediately and smiled widely.

"So it's clear that we'll win." Annabeth added with a superior expression on her face. "No offense to you, Will. I mean, you Apollo guys are great, but we've got the stronger Demigods in our team."

At her words, Will nearly spat out his orange juice. "We won't be on your team?" He asked incredulously and looked from Annabeth to Percy and after that to Nico. His expression showed pure disbelief and Nico thought that he also looked shocked. But that couldn't be true, could it? Why should Will be angry because he's not on their team? After all, they'd played against each other several times before.  _But that was before you became best friends..._ A little voice inside his head said, but Nico quickly shoved that thought away. 

"Afraid of losing against me, Solace?" He asked and raised his eyebrows slowly.

Will seemed to realize that his outburst had attracted the attention of the others, but instead of blushing he just shook his head. "No way, Death Boy. I just think about the effects losing will cause on you and your team."

At that, Nico crossed his arms. "Dream on, Sunshine." He'd whispered those words so that only Will could hear them. He didn't think that it was the right moment for Percy and Annabeth to hear his nickname for the son of Apollo.

"Who said that we're gonna lose?" Piper and Jason sat down next to him and Nico saw Jason raising his eyebrows at his girlfriend. With a sheepish expression on his face, the son of Jupiter held up his hand.

"Me?" He asked and made his voice sound uncertain, which made Percy, Annabeth and Nico laugh loudly. Even Piper couldn't stop herself from smiling and when he turned around, Nico noticed that Will was grinning as well.

"You're completely wrong. You can't defeat us." Percy made a gesture as if he'd already won the game and Annabeth rolled her eyes so that he couldn't see it.

"Then we should go and make plans, Seaweed Brain." The daughter of Athena stood up and grabbed her boyfriend's hand, so that he couldn't do anything except following her when she headed towards the Poseidon Cabin.

"I think they're sweet." Piper said suddenly and the three boys on Nico's table looked at her in confusion. When she realized that they were staring at her, Piper only shrugged. "My mum's the goddess of love, remember?" No one of them had the intention to say anything to that, so Piper sighed and stood up as well. "I'll see you when the game starts." With those words, she left the table and slowly, Jason started to leave as well.

"We'll win this, I'm sure of it." He said to Will, patted Nico on the shoulder and left without another word.

"What was this about?" Will asked and gestured towards the son of Jupiter, but Nico just shrugged.

"I don't know. Sometimes he behaves as if I'm his little brother or something like that."

"And it doesn't bother you?" Did he imagine it or was Will sounding angry? Well, he could tell for sure that his friend sounded displeased, which wasn't normal for him. But what...?

"I don't think that Jason could stop it. He's trying to show me that I'm accepted here very hard and it doesn't look like he would believe me when I tell him that I've already understood it."

Slowly, Will raised his eyebrows. "You have?"

"And in front of me sits the person who's helped me most to do it." It hadn't been easy for Nico to say those words, but now he couldn't take them back anymore. The expression on Will's face turned from surprised to shocked and afterwards to happy. The grin which Nico liked so much appeared on his lips and he had to smile back at him. There was no way he could stop it. Will always made him smile and just... happy. Something no one else was able to do.

"Nico..." Will began and hesitated for a moment which he used to stand up. Now wasn't the moment for deep conversations. At least it sounded as if Will was going to start one.

"We'll talk after the game, okay Sunshine?" Nico smiled at Will one last time before he turned around to walk towards the Big House, leaving the son of Apollo with a disappointed look on his face.

* * *

Nico quickly realized that Annabeth's strategy was working very well. They had decided that he should guard the flag together with Piper, who was hidden behind some bushes. They had searched for a place to hide for some time and now it wasn't possible to see her anymore. At least not if you were running towards Nico and the flag. Of course you could see her armor shining in the sun when you just looked around long enough, but during a game it wasn't very likely that someone did that. 

There were many trees around him and it wasn't easy for him to see someone coming closer. But since Nico was a son of Hades, he could sense people around him. Of course it was easier when they were dying or already dead, but with living people it worked as well. It had taken him much time and practice to discover that he could do it. However, now he could tell when a person got closer to him. The only thing he couldn't do was finding out who the person was. For that, he still needed his eyes and ears like everyone else.

Suddenly, there was a cracking sound behind him and Nico raised his sword.

"I'm sorry, I stepped on a branch." Piper hissed out of the bushes and he relaxed again. Nevertheless, he didn't let his sword sink. There was someone coming closer and it didn't take long until Nico could also hear footsteps behind some trees.

He took a few steps to the side and now he was standing between the noises and the flag. Of course it could also be a trap, but then Piper would be there to help him.

The sound of footsteps got louder and after a few more seconds, he could see someone moving through the forest carefully. And then it hit Nico.

There wasn't just any other Demigod walking towards him. It was Will and a wide grin appeared on his lips when he saw Nico.

"Nice to see you again, Death Boy." He said and nodded while he raised his sword as well. "However, I think I have to ask you to give me the flag. It would be much easier for you than to fight against me."

Right now, Nico regretted that he had helped Will to improve his fighting skills. Because the son of Apollo was really good and it wasn't always easy for him to stand against him.

Somehow, Nico managed to laugh. "You should really stop dreaming, Solace." He replied and it surprised himself how distant he sounded. Will seemed to notice that as well since he hesitated for half a second until he attacked him.

Their swords met and Nico could see in Will's eyes that he was sure that he'd win this fight. This made him determined to prove him wrong even more and he sidestepped quickly when the other boy tried to attack him again.

It seemed as if they just tried to hit each other for ages. It was clear that no one could win this fight without cheating and Nico prepared himself for something unexpected. They were moving away from the flag and into the forest. The only thing Will didn't know was that Piper was waiting in a bush only a few meters away from him and that she could help Nico very quickly.

"Are you getting tired, Death Boy?" Will asked and then Nico saw something he could use to get an advantage. He took a step to the right and hoped that the son of Apollo would do that as well. Because if he did...

"Not a chance. I've seen worse. And you?"

"Why should I-" Will couldn't finish his sentence. His feet got caught in tree roots and he lost his balance. However, somehow he was able to grab Nico's arm, so that they fell onto the ground together. Which meant that Will was lying on top of him now.

Nico's head had hit the ground, but luckily it didn't hurt very much. It took a few seconds until he was able to see everything clearly again anyway. There was a worried look on Will's face and his cheeks were red. When he realized how close they were and in what position they found themselves in, Nico blushed as well.

Will just opened his mouth to say something, but he shook his head. He had to concentrate. Even if Will looked worried, it could also have been a trick (to be honest, Nico didn't believe that). "You lost." He muttered and suddenly, a large grin appeared on the other boy's face, even if his eyes still looked worried.

"No, you lost."

"I think you lost, Will." Another voice cut in and Nico looked up to see Piper standing next to them, a wide smile on her lips. "At least there are two swords pointing at you."

And it was true. Nico's sword was touching Will's chest while Piper's pointed at his back. When the son of Apollo tried to stand up again, he realized that his sword had been close to his arm. Why didn't he notice that before?  _Maybe because Will had been so close to you..._

When Will held out his hand to help him at standing up, Nico grabbed it quickly. They avoided looking into each other's eyes and suddenly, there was the sound of many people walking towards them.

"Didn't I tell you that we would win?" Percy asked Jason, who didn't look very pleased.

"Yes, you did. About two hundred times."

"So our strategy had been successful!" Annabeth grinned and hugged Piper quickly.

"And why are you covered in dirt?" Jason looked from Nico to Will and raised his eyebrows slowly. They both muttered something about falling to the ground while fighting against each other and before Jason knew what happened, they had disappeared in the crowd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, this also isn't that long, but the later chapters are definitely much longer than the first ones, I promise. And to the writing, it also gets better with time. I've started writing this story six years ago and I've improved my writing skills ever since. I'm already doing some editing, but don't want to write the older chapters again, so...


	3. A Counsel Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter, but I hope you like it anyway! 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Will  


"So how is it going at Camp Jupiter?" Percy asked and they all looked at the images of Reyna, Frank and Hazel questioningly. The counselors of the cabins of Camp Half-Blood were in the Big House and this was the first meeting in which members of the other camp were present as well. After the war against Gaea, they had decided that it would be good if the camps stayed in touch, and not only about two or three members. It had to be something official and after some time they had agreed on a big council meeting that should take place every month. Of course it wasn't possible that they met in person each time, so an Iris Message had to be enough.

And right now was the time of one of those meetings. They were sitting in their usual places, the only difference was that there was a little more space between Nico and Percy (which Will didn't mind). There, the members of Camp Jupiter were 'sitting'.

"Everything's fine. We have recovered from the war and right now we're beginning to train new legionnaires so that we can defend the camp from all kinds of dangers. Or course some members still have doubts since they were loyal to Octavian, but there's nothing we could change about that. Maybe they will realize that our methods are good as well." Reyna told them and at her last sentence, Frank made a hissing noise.

"I don't think that they will change their minds any time soon. They still talk about Octavian like he belonged to the Gods or something like that. They still admire him, even if he was insane."

"That's true." Nico whispered so that only Will could hear him and he had to smile. For half a second, Nico's lips twitched as well, but then the son of Hades concentrated on the others again. Will knew that it had been very long since he last saw Hazel, his sister, and he understood that Nico missed her very much. He didn't have any other family members left and even if the other Demigods at Camp Half-Blood were his family now, it wasn't the same. Will would have loved to take his hand now to show him that he wasn't alone... _Wait, what?_ He didn't really just think that, did he? Yes, he did and somehow, Will meant it.

When he was around Nico, he felt the strong urge to protect him. And he wanted him to be happy, no matter what it would cost. During the war against Gaea, Nico's actions had shocked Will very much and when he'd said that he wanted to leave both camps for good, his heart had nearly stopped beating. But in all that time which had passed since then, Will had never asked himself _why_ he cared for Nico so much. Before the war, he had only seen the son of Hades a few times and they had never really talked to each other before...

"They hadn't really admired him. They just liked the thought of what he could give them." Jason murmured and ripped Will out of his thoughts.

"Many people would do everything to get power." Nico agreed and Reyna frowned at them.

"I know, and that's the problem." She sighed. "We don't know if they plan something against us."

"But even if they do, we'll be prepared for it." Hazel added quickly and when Will looked to the side quickly, he saw the tension in Nico's body. "And besides, there aren't many people left who still believe in Octavian. Most Romans have changed sides and follow Reyna and Frank now without thinking about it. They trust you with everything they have."

Even if it was difficult to see through the Iris message, Will thought that Frank blushed and even Reyna looked a bit uncomfortable. Frank nudged Hazel's shoulder softly, as if he wanted to say that she'd just stated something unnecessary. However, Nico's sister only smiled widely at him and kissed his cheek. "I know what I'm talking about." She whispered, even though everyone else could hear her as well.

"I think we should change the topic." Frank said quickly and looked at the members of Camp Half-Blood again. "We're able to deal with Octavian's followers. So now tell us what's going on at your camp. Have you already started to build shrines for the minor gods?"

Now the attention of everyone in the room turned to Jason, who nodded with a smile. "Yes, but it's not always easy to do it. It has to fit the god or goddess we're building it for and since we don't know very much about some of them, it takes some time to do it."

"But we've already built five of them." Piper added quickly and Will could hear that she was proud of her boyfriend.

"And one of them is for Kymopoleia." Percy said darkly, which made some of the counselors - including Nico and Will - laugh. They all knew about the meeting of Percy and Jason with his half-sister and it was no secret that they didn't like her very much.

"Next to that, there isn't much going on here." Connor Stoll, one of the heads of the Hermes Cabin, said. However, Annabeth shook her head quickly.

"You can't say it like that. I think there are some things which could be told. For example that we're building new cabins for the children of other gods who accept them now. And those new campers cause big changes here. For example the training program. Now that we have to teach so many people how to fight, we had to find a new method to do it. Which is why we're teaching many different ways to defend oneself and to attack someone else now. And in the beginning, it hadn't been easy to coordinate it. However, now we've found a pretty good way to do it and the new ones are learning very quickly." The daughter of Athena sounded proud and when Will looked at Percy, it wasn't difficult to see how much he loved her. But after he'd jumped into Tartarus to be with her, that wasn't a surprise anyway...

"That sounds great." Reyna replied and a smile appeared on her lips. "Maybe we could try to exchange our methods somehow." Her suggestion was followed by soft whispering among the members of Camp Half-Blood and when Will turned around to look at Nico, he saw that he was smiling.

"You'll see each other again very soon, I'm sure of that." Will whispered and for a few seconds, Nico didn't seem to understand what he wanted to say. But when Will looked to Hazel, Reyna and Frank, he nodded and his smile grew a little wider.

"I hope you're right." Nico replied and it seemed as if he wanted to say something else as well, but he was cut off by another loud voice.

"That is a very good idea, Reyna." It was the first time Chiron spoke since the meeting had begun and at the sound of his voice, everyone else fell silent. "It would be good for both camps if we learn something new. The time of peace won't last forever, as we had to see for many times by now."

"And when we'll train together and visit each other more often, it won't happen again that the camps will forget each other." Nico added and Will saw many surprised faces looking at him. A few months ago, the son of Hades wouldn't have said very much on a counsel meeting. This also showed how much he'd changed after the war against Gaea.

"And a few members of our camp have already asked us if it would be possible that they could learn your healing methods. And to be completely honest, I think it would be a really good idea to teach them at it. There are many things they don't know." Reyna didn't say the last sentence very loud, but Will heard her anyway and he couldn't stop himself from smiling. The idea of having students sounded strange to him. However, it could be nice to tell others what he knew.

"If that's all you ask for then it won't be a problem. I'm sure there are many things we can show you. And besides, the other members of my cabin need something do to. Some of them are getting pretty strange ideas." When Will said those words, he saw Nico grinning at him.

"You mean yourself, don't you?" The son of Hades whispered and Will felt the blood running to his cheeks. But why did this question embarrass him? _Well, maybe because you are also thinking some strange things..._ A voice in the back of his head muttered, but he decided to ignore it. Right now wasn't the time to be distracted.

"Oh shut up, Death Boy." He whispered, which made Nico grin even wider.


	4. Being Honest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Will  


"You're missing her very much, right?" Will asked and Nico looked up with a surprised expression on his face. After the meeting, the two of them had walked to the lake and now they were sitting on the beach. In the sunlight, Nico looked even paler than usual and that made his hair seem even darker. Somehow, Will couldn't stop himself from thinking that he looked beautiful.

"What do you mean?" Nico asked and raised his eyebrows slowly.

"Hazel. During the meeting, it seemed like you were missing her." He explained and for a few seconds, he thought that the son of Hades was going to deny it. But to his own surprise, Nico just sighed.

"That's true. She's the only family I've got and to know that she's so far away... It's not always easy."

"But you'll see each other again soon. When the camps start exchanging training methods, she'll come to Camp Half-Blood for some time." Will tried to sound optimistically, even if the look on Nico's face made his heart sink a little bit.

"Nevertheless, it won't be the same. I'll always know that she'll leave again."

"And you're worried that something happens to her while you aren't there to help." It wasn't a question and when Nico looked away quickly, Will knew that he was right. "In Camp Jupiter, Hazel's safe. It's protected and I think that she can defend herself pretty well. After all, she's your sister." At that, the other boy looked at him again and his lips twitched, even if the depressed expression didn't leave his face completely.

"I know that she doesn't need protection. And Frank's with her, so I know that someone's there if anything happens. But after what happened to Bianca..."

It took Will all of his strength not to inhale sharply. Normally, Nico didn't talk about his other sister. With no one. Not even his closest friends here in camp.

"Even if I should know it better, I still think that it's my fault that she died... I should have been there to help her." Nico looked at the water and Will could see that he was lost in his memories. Suddenly, the expression on his face turned cold again and he stood up. "But I wasn't. And now she'll never come back."

When the son of Hades began to walk towards the camp again, Will had to hurry up to stop him. "You're right, it wasn't your fault that she died. You couldn't have done anything to change it. Who says that you wouldn't have died as well when you would have been there?"

Slowly, Nico turned around again and to Will's relief, the distant look on his face had disappeared. However, he couldn't say if what he saw right now didn't worry him even more. The expression on Nico's face showed pure desperation and this was the first time Will saw him helpless.

He took a step forward and hoped that the other boy wouldn't back away. Luckily, Nico didn't move. He only looked at Will wide-eyed and he tried to smile at him reassuringly. "You don't have to blame yourself for what happened. It isn't your fault. And I know that nothing will happen to Hazel. She's very strong and I'm sure that she can deal with every kind of danger. And besides, you have to see it from another perspective as well. When something would have happened to you back then, I wouldn't have gotten a chance to get to know you better. And that would have been really terrible because I like you very much, Death Boy."

He didn't know why it happened, but suddenly, Will was hugging Nico tightly. First, the son of Hades stiffened and it seemed as if he wanted to shrink back. But after a few seconds, he relaxed in Will's arms, which made his heart beat even faster. When they let go of each other after some time, none of them knew what to say.

All of a sudden, Nico seemed to realize that he was still standing very close to Will and he took a step back quickly. The son of Apollo saw that his cheeks were red and he couldn't stop himself from smiling. Like this, Nico looked very cute.

"Thank you." For a few seconds, Will thought that he had just imagined Nico saying those words. He just wanted to reply something when the son of Hades turned around and vanished in the forest.

* * *

Later that day, Will entered the dining pavilion just to see that the Hades table was empty. First, he only thought that Nico was late, but when he saw Percy and Jason sitting at the table of the Poseidon cabin, a bad feeling appeared in his stomach.

What happened to Nico? Wasn't he feeling good? Or did something happen to him? Or even worse, had Will done something to make him angry or upset?

Without thinking about it, he started to walk towards the table where Percy and Jason were sitting. However, he didn't sit down next to them. "Hey, do you know where Nico is?"

Percy shook his head immediately, but Jason frowned and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face. "I've been asking myself that question as well. And no, I don't know it. I have seen him a few hours ago, he was walking through the forest with a look on his face I couldn't interpret. But I can't say what he's doing right now and why he's not here."

"It's been some time that Nico didn't appear to the meals anymore..." Percy murmured and watched the Hades table which was still empty.

Those words were followed by silence, which made Will even more uncomfortable. "I think I'll go and search him." He muttered and turned around to walk away quickly. On his way to the forest, he met Piper and when she looked from him to the table where Nico normally sat, her face lit up a little bit.

"Good luck." She whispered into his ear before she wrapped her arms around Jason's shoulders, who started to laugh loudly. With a small smile on his face, Will began to leave the dining pavilion.

* * *

He found Nico sitting on a tree trunk close to the beach. The son of Hades was watching the sky and Will couldn't say what he was thinking since his expression was reserved.

"Nico?" He asked quietly and to his surprise, he didn't flinch.

"Shouldn't you be at the dining pavilion with the others?" Nico didn't look at him, not even when Will sat down next to him and so he looked into the sky as well.

"I think I should be the one asking that question. I was there, but when I saw that you didn't come I went searching for you."

"And why did you do that?"

Right now, Will couldn't stop himself from looking at Nico any longer. "I was worried!" Apparently, there had been something in his voice since Nico turned his head slowly to look into his eyes. There, Will could see pure disbelief. "Oh come on, Death Boy! You should start accepting that there are many people who care about you."

"You don't have to."

"And if we want to?"

"Can't you change it?"

"Why would we want that?" Will realized that he had nearly shouted the last sentence too late. Luckily, no one was there who could hear them.

"Because I'm not used to it. I don't know how to deal with many people being nice to me and treating me like I am a real person whose opinion is worth something. It's just... strange." Nico was speaking quickly now, as if he had held back those things for too long. Will wanted to put a hand on his shoulder, but he stopped himself in the last second. He didn't know how the other boy would react, now that he was already that troubled.

"I think you're dealing with all those things very well."

"You just think that because it's easier for me to be myself when I'm with you." After having said that sentence, Nico looked at Will in alarm. It seemed as if he couldn't believe that he had just said those words and Will was also looking at the son of Hades wide-eyed.

"Nico..." He began slowly, but the other boy just cut him off.

"You see? You make me say what I'm thinking and that's..." He shook his head and closed his eyes for a few moments. "I should go."

"You don't have to." Will replied quickly and put a hand on his shoulder, but that only made Nico feel even more uncomfortable. He stood up quickly and began to walk into the forest. However, he stopped after a few meters and looked back again. Their eyes met and Will couldn't tell if Nico just seemed sad or if there was something else as well. But then the moment was over and the son of Hades vanished in the shadows.


	5. A Prophecy?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the next chapter! I hope you like it! 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico  


Why did everything have to be so complicated?

Nico was walking through the forest at night. His conversation with Will a few hours ago had been horrible and right now, he had to find a way to deal with his anger, confusion and fear. He shouldn't have said those things to the son of Apollo! It was stupid of him. Normally, he didn't tell others about his feelings or thoughts when they were too personal. But with Will it was different. He _wanted_ Will to know how he was feeling.

And Nico wasn't sure if it was good or bad.

When he was with him, he felt happy and he could relax. Will made Nico laugh and it surprised him very much that he could make him laugh as well. It didn't happen very often that someone thought Nico was sympathetic or something like that. When Will was around, he didn't have to hide anymore. He could just be himself and there was someone who accepted him. Of course the others at Camp Half-Blood - Jason, Percy, Annabeth and Piper - liked him as well. However, with them it was different. They were his friends, there was no doubt of it. Nonetheless, they didn't understand him completely. For them, Nico was still a riddle - a riddle which was beginning to solve itself, but he was different and it didn't look like it was going to change any time soon.

But why on earth did he say those things to Will?

It was better to remain silent and say nothing than to expose all your feelings, wasn't it? And the point was that Nico didn't even know how exactly he felt about the son of Apollo. Yes, there were those butterflies in his stomach every time he smiled or said something nice. And when they touched accidentally, it felt like a flash had hit Nico. But did that really mean that he had a crush on Will?

With Percy, it had been different. He had admired him and for a long time, the son of Poseidon had been his hero. And that's why Nico had thought that he liked him very much. It had turned out that he'd been wrong, which was good. Percy had Annabeth and they loved each other very much, no one could miss that.

Suddenly, Nico heard a noise behind him in the woods. He turned around quickly (and a little part of him hoped that Will was following him), just to see a squirrel jumping from tree to tree. He couldn't stop himself from being disappointed. However, the feeling didn't last long. Something else attracted Nico's attention and he never thought that this could happen within the borders of Camp Half-Blood. There was this cold feeling in his body which announced the appearance of a ghost. But how could a ghost enter the camp? And what did he or she want here?

Slowly, he began to walk through the forest and towards the dim light that had appeared behind some trees. The cold feeling in his body became stronger and Nico knew that it wasn't a very strong ghost. Otherwise, he would have sensed the appearance immediately.

It was a woman. She was wearing a white dress and in the darkness it looked like she was covered in fog. However, the light was coming from inside of her and that showed Nico that she couldn't last in the world of the living very long. Her time was limited.

When she saw him, her face lit up and she stopped playing with her long her which had been brown when she'd been alive. "You are here." Was all she said and for some time, there was silence around them. Nico realized that she didn't have the intention so say anything else, so he took a few steps towards her and raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here?" He tried to sound friendly, which wasn't easy since he was still mad at himself for saying those things to Will. But right now, he had to put his anger aside. Maybe she wanted to tell him something important. At least he thought that because she wouldn't have come to Camp Half-Blood when nothing had happened.

"My name's Maria." She began and hesitated for a few seconds. She turned around and looked into the forest to make sure that nobody else was there. When she was satisfied, she focused on him again and there was concern in her eyes. "And I came here to warn you, my Lord."

It wasn't unusual that ghosts called him like that, but this time it took Nico by surprise. He frowned and apparently, Maria thought that she'd done something wrong since an alarmed expression appeared on her face. "Why do you want to warn me?" Nico asked quickly and hoped that she wasn't going to vanish.

"Because lots of trouble is going to come. There will be darkness, and there will be war. And there is no way you can escape from it. It is going to come everywhere."

"What do you mean by that?"

Maria shook her head quickly and took a few steps back. "I don't have the time to say anything else, and even if I wanted to, I couldn't do it. I've already said too much, my Lord. And I will be punished for coming here since the dead are not allowed to enter the camps. I'm sorry, but I have to go. I wish you good luck, my Lord." With those words, she turned around and ran into the forest.

Nico tried to follow her as quickly as possible, but when he reached the tree behind which she'd disappeared, there was nothing. Only the darkness surrounding him. He stood there for a few more moments, but his confusion wouldn't vanish. What did she mean by darkness and war? The war against Gaea was over and they had hoped that there would be peace, but apparently their wish wouldn't come true.

* * *

When he came out of the forest, the sun was already rising. He could hear many people talking at the dining pavilion, but Nico didn't have the desire to go to them. Maria's words were still bothering him and he wanted to think about them for some time. Why did she wanted to warn him? And even more important, what was going to come? Could it really mean that -

"Good morning, Nico!" A loud voice called and when he looked up, he saw Piper walking towards him. She was smiling widely, but when she looked at him more closely, a worried expression appeared on her face. "You look terrible! Didn't you sleep last night?"

Apparently, Piper would know when he was lying to her. So he only nodded.

"What happened? Was it something between you and Will?" That surprised Nico. Very much, to be exact. However, Piper was the daughter of the goddess of love, so...

"Not exactly. I mean, kind of. But not very much. Something else happened as well." Nico said quickly and hoped that she wouldn't ask about Will any longer. Somehow, he knew that it wasn't going to happen.

Piper frowned and sat down on the grass. Nico did the same and when he saw the questioning look on her face, he sighed. "I've met a ghost last night."

"But doesn't that happen to you very often?"

"I've met her in camp."

"Oh." When she realized the meaning of his words, her eyes grew wide. "I thought they couldn't get over the borders!"

Nico nodded slowly. "That's what I thought as well. Normally, that's not possible."

"And what did the ghost want?" Now Piper was really worried and she began to play with a ring on her finger uneasily.

"Her name was Maria and she wanted to warn me. She said something about darkness and a war which is going to come, but when I asked her what exactly she meant, she disappeared."

For a few moments, Piper was silent and looked at Nico with a thoughtful expression on her face. "You should talk to Chiron." She said finally and he nodded.

"That's what I was going to do."

"However, you should talk to Will first."

"Why is that?" Nico raised his eyebrows and Piper shook her head.

"Boys." She muttered and he wasn't sure if there was amusement or annoyance in her eyes. Maybe something of both. "You only see that someone likes you when you're told so, right?"

Now Nico was staring at her with his mouth open. Nevertheless, she carried on speaking. "Come on Nico, are you blind? I know you like Will very much, I've seen the way you look at him and when he's around, you behave completely different. And it's obvious that he likes you too! Why else would he be so worried about you every time something happens? And don't tell me that I'm wrong, I know what I'm talking about! In the topic of love, I'm an expert!"

"Does anyone else knows that I like Will?" He knew that it was stupid, but there was no other question which came to his mind right now. Luckily, Piper shook her head.

"I don't think so. However, that doesn't change the fact that you have to talk to him!"

"And what if -" He didn't get a chance to finish that sentence. Suddenly, they heard a loud voice calling his name and when he turned around, he saw Will Solace walking towards them, a mixture of anger and worry on his face.


	6. What Are We?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

When she saw Will coming closer to them, Piper stood up quickly. "Good luck and be honest with him. And don't forget to tell Chiron about the ghost!" She winked at him, turned around and walked towards the dining pavilion. On her way, she greeted Will who seemed a little surprised to see her here.

"What are you doing here?" Will's tone was determinant and Nico knew that there was no way to get out of this situation any time soon. "And why are you - You look terrible, Nico!" When he looked at Nico more closely, his anger seemed to vanish. Slowly, the son of Apollo sat down next to him and Nico thought that he could see concern in his eyes. However, he could have also been wrong.

"What happened? You look like you didn't sleep last night."

Nico tried to smile at Will, but he knew that it didn't look very convincing. So he only sighed and nodded. "I didn't."

"And why -"

"I've met a ghost. Here at camp." Just like Piper, Will needed a few seconds to realize the meaning behind those words. Then his eyes grew wide and he paled.

"How is that possible?"

"It shouldn't be." He replied immediately and the son of Apollo frowned. "Normally, they can't get over the borders. I don't know how she did it."

"She?"

"Her name was Maria." Nico nodded. "And she wanted to warn me. She said that darkness and war were going to come and that we couldn't escape from it, even if we wanted to."

Now an alarmed expression appeared on Will's face and he ran a hand through his hair - something he did very often when he was nervous. "Have you told anyone about it?"

"I didn't get a chance to do so. When I came out of the forest, Piper talked to me and now you're here."

Slowly, the son of Apollo nodded. Nico could see that he was trying to figure out what Maria had wanted to say, but then he sighed. "You have to talk to Chiron. This is serious."

"I wanted to do it now. Even if I doubt that he knows what the ghost wanted to say."

"But I'm sure he'll know what we can do now." Will murmured and the way he watched Nico now made him look away. "And after that, you have to get some sleep. You look terrible, Death Boy. However, I think you should eat something first. After you haven't done that yesterday evening..." Those words stayed in the air between them and a cold feeling appeared in his stomach. He didn't want to talk about last night. He hadn't thought about everything he'd said and it had been stupid to tell Will all those things.

"Yeah, I think I'll do that." He muttered and wanted to stand up, but Will grabbed his hand and stopped him from doing so. For a few moments, both boys watched their entwined hands and then they let go of each other as if their skin had been burned. Nico felt the blood running to his cheeks and from the corner of his eyes, he could see that the son of Apollo was blushing as well.

"What was this about?" Nico asked quietly into the silence between them and he heard Will taking a deep breath.

"Actually, I was angry at you."

When he only frowned at him, Will sighed. "This morning, I knocked on your door about two hundred times. Normally, you open after a few minutes, but today, no one was there. I thought that something had happened... Or maybe that you were angry and didn't want to see me. Then I saw you sitting here with Piper and I didn't know what to think anymore."

To be honest, he didn't know what to say right now. It would have been alright if Will was angry. Presumably, Nico would have felt the same way. But hearing that he was worried and even confused... that made the strange feeling in his stomach return. "I wasn't angry at you." He answered simply and this seemed to surprise the son of Apollo very much since he opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but no sound escaped.

"In fact, I was angry at me."

"I think you have to explain that." Will murmured and narrowed his eyes which made Nico sigh. He crossed his arms.

"I've already told you that I'm telling you too much."

"But that isn't a bad thing." Will threw in thoughtfully.

"For you." Nico replied immediately and swallowed. "I'm not used to tell others about my feelings. And that's the problem with you. You make me want to do it." That's it. The words were out and he couldn't take them back anymore.

He didn't have to see the look on Will's face to know that he couldn't believe what he'd just heard. "Death Boy..."

Nico shook his head slowly. "Don't get me wrong. I like you very much. More than everyone else I've met in my life, to be honest."

Will tried to laugh, but it sounded breathless and suddenly, Nico realized that the son of Apollo was leaning towards him. And why didn't it surprise him that he was doing the same? "You're great, you know that? And no, I don't just mean as a friend. I think now it's time for  _me_ to be honest. I won't be angry if you hate me after it and never want to see me again, but please let me finish first. I've never quite understood you, Nico. Before the war, you barely appeared here at camp and you pushed everyone away. There were people who wanted to be your friends. However, it didn't seem like you wanted any of them around you. You were always alone and there was this dark expression on your face, like you couldn't laugh or be happy. And somehow, during the war against Gaea everything changed. I can't explain it, but suddenly, I felt the urge to protect you. Seeing you fading scared me so much and I didn't understand it. And when you stayed at the infirmary for a few days, I realized that you were a completely different person than I thought you were. And you became my closest friend, which shouldn't be a surprise to you. However, there was something else as well. I've never wanted to protect one of my friends as much as I want to do it with you. Sometimes, I even think that I  _need_ you to be safe. And I want you to be happy. You have a great smile, you know that? I think I've never told you... you should do it more often. And laughing as well. Oh gods, this is really awkward, isn't it?" Will laughed breathlessly.

Then he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "What I wanted to say before I started to tell you stupid things is that you're special to me, Nico. In more than one way. And you don't have to be afraid to tell me about your feelings. I'll be there for you, no matter what happens. And now you can decide what you want to do. Stand up and run away, hate me if you want to. Or stay here and laugh at me, it's your choice." 

This was it. The butterflies in his stomach were going crazy and Nico felt like he was going to explode. He shouldn't do this, right? What if Will didn't mean that...

"And when I decide to do none of those things?" Nico asked and took a deep breath. It took all his courage to lean in and kiss Will.


	7. Decisions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

When their lips touched, he was prepared for everything.

Will could have cried out in shock, he could have yelled at him or he could have simply run away. Nico expected him to be angry or maybe he would laugh because he thought that he was so stupid. In his head, he saw all those possibilities and about two thousand others. He really wouldn't be surprised if one of them became true, everything else wouldn't be logical. At least Will was far too good for him, a son of Hades. 

In fact, everything could have happened and it wouldn't have shocked Nico as much as Will's reaction did. Because the son of Apollo actually kissed him back.

As soon as they started kissing, Will wrapped his arms around Nico's shoulders to pull him closer. Even if Nico wouldn't have been so surprised, he wouldn't have had any difficulties at it since he was stronger than him. For a few seconds, Nico was frozen in shock. It was too good to be true. But then he relaxed and touched Will's arm carefully, just to make sure that he wasn't dreaming.

The kiss didn't last long and after it, both boys looked at each other with wide eyes. Will's cheeks were red and Nico knew that he was blushing as well. However, the eyes of the son of Apollo were shining and he thought that he'd never seen him happier than in this moment. It was obvious that they didn't know what to say and Nico looked at his hands.

Suddenly, Will touched his cheek softly and forced him to look into his eyes again. "Can I be honest?" He didn't wait for an answer. "I didn't expect you to do  _that_ , Death Boy." And then Will smiled slightly and Nico thought that he'd never seen anything more perfect in his life. "Of course that doesn't mean that I didn't like it!" The last sentence was spoken very quickly and now Nico couldn't stop himself from grinning any longer. 

"Calm down, Sunshine." He laughed and after a few seconds, Will relaxed again. "I'm not going to run away from you anymore."

"Took you enough time to realize that you like me." Will tried to sound offended, but his wide smile made that impossible.

"You should know that I'm not good at understanding people or feelings. Son of Hades, remember?" He raised one of his eyebrows without letting the grin leave his lips.

"Yes, and even if it's pretty stupid, I've fallen for you. Next time, I should think about it more closely before I start a relationship with someone. Ouch!" At those words, Nico had hit Will's arm and now the son of Apollo was raising his hands. It looked like he wanted to defend himself, but before Nico could realize what was happening, he was in Will's arms again and it didn't seem as if the other one wanted to let go. "Sorry, that wasn't funny." He looked at Nico for a few moments and just when he wanted to reply something, a smile appeared on the other boy's lips. "I don't think that there will be a next time." He murmured and now Nico had to grin.

"Then you should let go of my shoulders quickly, Sunshine. Otherwise I can't guarantee that nothing will happen to you." This time, they both had to laugh and Will stood up so that he was able to help Nico at doing so.

"I've told you a million times that you're not ready for the really dark stuff yet, Nico." Even though he was still smiling, there was concern in Will's eyes and suddenly, Nico remembered his meeting with the ghost again.

It hit him like a bottle of cold water and he couldn't stop his grin from vanishing immediately. Apparently, Will thought that he'd done something wrong because he wanted to let go of Nico's hand which he was still holding. He tightened his grip around it quickly. "Have I -" Will started, but he shook his head quickly.

"No, you have just reminded me of something." When the son of Apollo frowned, Nico looked back to the forest for half a second. This seemed to explain everything since Will's expression changed from confused to delighted and then to worried.

"We have to talk to Chiron."

Nico nodded. "Sadly, that's true. It seems as if something bad is going to happen soon."

"Didn't we have enough trouble during the last years?" Will murmured darkly and Nico's lips twitched.

"The past months weren't that bad..." He began and slowly, the two of them began to walk towards the Big House. "And even if last night wasn't very nice, today has started very good..."

* * *

"What is so important that you can't even let us finish our breakfast?" Percy asked and looked at Chiron questioningly.

After Nico had told him everything about his meeting with the ghost, Chiron had asked Will and him to search the other head counselors. Of course they hadn't been thrilled when the two of them interrupted their breakfast, but there was nothing they could do against it. Maria's words had worried Chiron very much and since it was obvious that something bad was going to happen, the others had to know about it.

While searching the others, Will and Nico didn't hold hands openly. They both knew that this wasn't the right moment to show their relationship. Nevertheless, Piper was smiling at them from across the table knowingly and Will squeezed Nico's hand so that nobody could see it. A small smile appeared on his lips and when he turned his head to look at Will - his  _boyfriend_ \- he saw that he was grinning as well. 

"Last night something happened you all should know about." Slowly, Chiron turned around to look at Nico. "However, this story should be told by the one who experienced it."

He nodded and looked at the other head counselors in the room. "Last night, I was in the forest because I couldn't sleep. First, everything seemed to be normal, but after some time, I saw a light behind some trees and when I got closer to it, it turned out to be a ghost. Her name was Maria and to be honest, I don't know how she got inside the borders of Camp Half-Blood. Normally, ghosts can't enter the camp. I asked her why she was there and to my surprise, her answer came immediately. She said she wanted to warn me and that we'll have to prepare ourselves for darkness and war. There wouldn't be a way to escape from it, but when I wanted to know more about it, she didn't want to tell me anything else. All she said was that she was going to be punished for coming here and that she's wishing us good luck." 

In the silence which followed his words, everyone was staring at him in shock. He knew that the other's couldn't believe it and if he wouldn't have met the ghost himself, Nico would have had doubts as well.

"But how could the ghost enter Camp Half-Blood? It's impossible!" Clarisse was the first one who spoke and a few other head counselors nodded in agreement.

"Do you think that it was a real ghost? Maybe someone just wanted to scare you..." Nico looked at the current head counselor of the Hephaestus Cabin coldly.

"I think I can distinguish a real ghost from some kind of joke." He replied and the other Demigod looked at the table quickly.

"There's no way Nico can be wrong." To his surprise, Will defended him. He had done it before, but after what had happened in the morning between the two of them, Nico saw it from a completely different perspective. "After all, his father's the god of the Underworld." The Underworld. He didn't say the dead... "And even if you try very hard, it's not possible to trick Nico at those things. He knows what he's talking about."

From the corner of his eyes, he saw the son of Apollo winking at him and Nico felt his lips twitch. Under the table, he squeezed Will's hand quickly and even if the feeling of them holding hands was still strange, he began to like it.

"So now the question is what we're going to do about it." Jason said slowly and now the attention of everyone in the room turned to him. "Do you think that another ghost could tell us more about the war, Nico?"

He shook his head immediately. "They couldn't help us. I don't know where Maria came from, but somehow, I couldn't classify her in any part of the Underworld."

"Which means that someone has sent her." Annabeth concluded and Nico saw in her eyes that she was thinking about it closely.

"The fact that she was able to get through the borders confirms that speculation." Chiron added and nodded slowly. He also seemed to be lost in thoughts.

"And what are we going to do now when we can't find out more about it?" The head counselor of one of the minor cabins asked and this time, Percy answered the question.

"It doesn't mean that we can't find out more. Nico can't talk to ghosts about it because someone else - maybe a god - had sent Maria. But we can still ask others if they know something about a war which is going to come, or about tensions in general."

"And maybe the others in Camp Jupiter have heard anything as well." Jason added quickly and a few people in the room nodded.

"From now on, we have to be very careful again. It would be good if we start to train harder, just in case that there will be an attack." Annabeth and Percy exchanged looks and Nico knew that they would think about new methods soon.

Chiron nodded. "However, I don't think that the time has already come to tell the others about it. After everything that happened in the previous months, it would be good to remain in the status of peace for some time."

This time, Will nodded. "Otherwise, there would be many Demigods who break down just because they're thinking about the war too much. It's not nice to help about twenty others a day when they are stressing themselves too much."

Slowly, the head counselors nodded in agreement and Chiron smiled at them. "Then I think I can say that this meeting is over. When something new happens, I will call you as soon as possible. And now you should go back to the dining pavilion again, the time for breakfast is nearly over."

The others started to stand up and leave the room. Nico and Will just wanted to follow them when Chiron called his name. "I want you to tell Reyna, Hazel and Frank at Camp Jupiter about what you have seen, Nico. When it is true what the ghost had said, this will affect both camps."

Nico nodded and when he thought about Hazel and a war which was going to come, his head began to hurt. "Of course I'll do it."

He left the Big House together with Will and without hesitation, the son of Apollo took his hand. "We'll do it, but not now. You have to eat something, Death Boy. You look like you're going to break down every second and that's nothing I would like to see."

Nico knew that it wouldn't be possible to start a debate with Will when he was like this, so he just gave in with a sigh. "When it makes you happy, Sunshine."

The beaming smile on Will's lips made the butterflies in Nico's stomach return and right now, he didn't think that it was so bad to walk through Camp Half-Blood when he was holding Will Solace's hand.


	8. News

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter, I hope you like it! 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Will

"So you're saying that it is most likely that another war will come?" Frank asked - Will thought it was the fifth time he did so - and frowned.

"I think I explained it well enough." Nico muttered and he couldn't hold back a smile. Even though the son of Hades would never believe it, Will thought that he was cute. Of course he couldn't say something like that aloud. Most probably, Nico would kill him for that.

"What are we going to do now?" Reyna's voice was calm and her face was concentrated. Even through the Iris Message, Will could see that she was trying to figure out a plan to get out of this situation. "It's not like we know who wants to kill us."

"But maybe there's a way to find out why the ghost appeared here in Camp Half-Blood." Nico said slowly and now everyone turned his or her attention to him again. "I can't find her, that's clear and it's not like any other ghost would tell me something about her or anything strange that has happened in the past months. However, there are other ways to find out why -"

"No." Hazel's voice was as sharp and she shook her head. "You can't do that, Nico. Not after what happened to you during the war against Gaea. And even if you would have all of your powers, it still would be far too dangerous."

Now Will raised his eyebrows and looked from Hazel to Nico. "What's she talking about?" He demanded to know and couldn't stop his tone from becoming suspicious.

When Nico didn't make any effort to answer his question, Will turned his attention to Hazel again. "What did I miss?"

With a sigh, Hazel gave in and shook her head slowly. "There is a way to find out where the ghost came from." She began and ignored the reproachful expression on Nico's face. "But it's nothing anyone except Nico could do since he's a child of Hades."

"But you're..." Frank began, however as soon as he started, his girlfriend raised her hand to make him fall silent again.

"I'm a daughter of Pluto, not of Hades. In some parts of the Underworld, it makes a huge difference if you're Roman or Greek." Without thinking of it twice, she took his hand and turned around to look at Nico and Will again, who were still watching them closely. Nico with an impatient look on his face, while Will himself was just curious to see what Hazel was going to say. Nevertheless, he couldn't stop that uneasy feeling in his stomach that told him that Nico - his  _boyfriend_ \- was having a very stupid idea again. 

"Well, as I said, there's a way a child of Hades can communicate with much more powerful ghosts than the ones who appear on earth. But to do that, you have to go into the Underworld and it's a long and dangerous journey. I've never heard of anyone who came back from the Fields of the Whispering Silence."

Nico just opened his mouth to reply something, but Will was faster. "Forget it." He said sternly and grabbed Nico's arm. "You're not going there. Didn't I say that you're not ready for the dark stuff again?"

"It's not that dange -" The son of Hades didn't get a chance to finish that sentence. In that moment, Reyna sighed loudly through the Iris Message and shook her head.

"Nico, Will's right. Forget it. We'll find another way to deal with this. I know that we don't have that much time, but we don't want you to get in danger just because we want to solve the problem quickly."

"You should start realizing that there are people who don't want you to get hurt." Hazel said softly and when Will nodded with a smile only he could see, Nico gave in with a sigh.

"I really shouldn't have come back to the camp." He muttered darkly, but Will could see in his eyes that he didn't mean it like that. It was still hard for Nico to show his thoughts and feelings and it would take much time and patience to change that. Luckily, Will had enough of both. The thought of making Nico happy was incredible and he still couldn't believe that he was able to call the other boy his _boyfriend_ now. It was too good to be true. "You're able to influence me." Nico shook his head and right now, his expression showed disbelief. 

"Nico..." Reyna began and Will could see that she was shocked of his words. However, as soon as he saw their faces, Nico began to laugh loudly and he had to grin as well.

"What...?" First, Reyna didn't seem to understand what was going on, but as soon as she realized that the son of Hades just had been joking, a smile appeared on her lips and she shook her head. "What have you done to him?" She asked Will and crossed her arms. "He's..."

"Different?" Frank tried to finish her sentence and Reyna nodded.

"Indeed."

Instead of answering their questions, Will just winked at them and took Nico's hand, who smiled widely at him. When they had walked through the camp together, the son of Hades had hesitated at first, but that feeling had vanished almost immediately. Of course the other demigods had been very surprised and many people had just stared at them wide-eyed, but Nico and Will didn't pay attention to them. 

"Oh my god, you're..." Hazel shrieked and Frank just looked at the two of them wide eyed.

"Yep, that's right." Nico nodded and for a few more seconds, the three demigods from Camp Jupiter stared at them in silence. And then it came all at once.

Later, Will couldn't tell anymore who congratulated them first and who threatened to kill him if he ever hurt Nico, but he didn't care. Everything important to him was Nico's smile and the fact that they were holding hands in front of the others. And of course that the others accepted their relationship.

"So we'll have to figure out another way to prevent this war." Nico said several minutes later when the others were nearly silent again.

"Yes, we do." Will replied immediately and squeezed his hand. "No more dark stuff, doctor's orders."

Nico's lips twitched which made his heard beat faster. "When you say it, Sunshine." He murmured so that only Will could hear him.

"Should I tell the others at Camp Jupiter about the things that have happened?" Reyna asked and Nico shook his head.

"Chiron said that it would be better to keep it secret first. We don't want the others to get scared until we know what's going to come."

After a few seconds of silence, she nodded. "Sounds logical. So the three of us will have to search for a way to help you alone."

"I don't think that it'll be a problem." Hazel said slowly and smiled. "Hasn't it always been three demigods who went on a quest? I think you can compare this situation to it."

"And we'll try to find out more as well." Will added with a smile.

Suddenly, there was a sound as if someone was knocking at a door. It took them half a second to realize that it came through the Iris Message and when Reyna, Hazel and Frank turned around to see who it was, Nico and Will exchanged a smile.

"There's a meeting in about ten minutes, so we have to go." Frank appeared in front of them again and there was an apologetic expression on his face.

"No problem." Will replied and Nico nodded.

"You shouldn't forget your responsibilities because of us."

A grateful smile spread out on Frank's lips and he stood up. "We'll call you if we find out something useful."

"And we'll tell you when we've found out who wants to kill us." Nico murmured just in the moment the image in front of them vanished.


	9. Shouldn't We Be Safe Here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

“As you all might know,” Annabeth began while sitting down at the Hades table next to Nico, “we’re going to have another match of Capture The Flag later. And since I’m the best at strategy and I was able to decide who’ll be on my team, I’ve decided that I’m taking you, Nico, and the Apollo cabin.”

Nico and Will exchanged a smile. A few days had passed since they had informed Camp Jupiter about Nico’s meeting with the ghost and everything seemed to be suspiciously quiet. Of course there were a few monsters attacking the borders of Camp Half-Blood, but that wasn’t something new to the demigods. The only difference was that Nico's dreams got even worse which shouldn’t have been possible under different circumstances. At least he’d been having nightmares about Tartarus for a long time by now.

“This time, Percy will be working with Jason and the Aphrodite cabin, I think that’ll be an advantage for us since they don’t get along too well when it has to be decided who will be the leader in this game. And our strategy will look like this…” It took Annabeth some time to explain her plan to them and Nico and Will just sat there listening to all the different ideas which she’d simply put together. Apparently, the children of Ares and Hephaestus were on their team as well and this time, Nico shouldn’t guard their flag but try to get the one of their opponents. The Apollo cabin should watch his back and help him if something happened and Will’s eyes started to shine when he heard that he was going to be with Nico all the time.

At the mentioning of that, Nico had to smile too. Even though the past days had been very dark for the camp and everyone who knew of the ghost and her words was expecting something terrible to happen any time soon, the son of Hades had never been happier. Every time he looked at Will, he realized that there was something worth fighting for. Not just the safety of all demigods and all the other people in the world, but love. Something he would have never thought to experience it by himself. However, there seemed to be someone who wanted to spend his time with him and who seemed to actually like him and that was… amazing. 

Under the table, Will squeezed Nico's hand and he smiled at the son of Apollo. “We’re gonna win this, Death Boy.” He whispered after Annabeth had finished her speech and Nico nodded with a grin on his lips.

“After all, we’re together.” He replied and didn’t even stop grinning when Mr. D yelled at them for sitting at the wrong table for breakfast.

* * *

Everything in the forest seemed to be silent when Nico and Will made their way to where they thought the flag of the other team would be. Even the birds didn’t chirp their usual melody which could be heard all over the grounds of Camp Half-Blood. The silence was strange and normally, every demigod would have noticed that something was wrong, but right now, they were all too occupied with the game.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps to their right and Nico gave Will a sign to hide behind a tree. However, he didn’t follow him. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and called a few shadows which hid him. He knew that he also earned a reproachful look from Will, but right now, Nico didn’t care. Using his powers like this didn’t cost him much of his strength. It was not like he was shadow traveling or something like that, which was far more exhausting.

It turned out to be a group of children of Aphrodite, led by Piper. They were trying to be silent, but apparently, not all of them were able to move through the woods without being heard. Nico couldn’t see in which direction they were going, but after a few seconds, he nodded at Will, who wasn’t looking too happy, and the two of them continued to sneak towards the flag of the other team.

Suddenly, there was the sound of a loud explosion somewhere behind them and Will and Nico stopped immediately. Listening to the sounds of the forest for the first time since the game had started, Nico realized many things at once. Most important, the lack of noises all around them. The only thing except their own breathing were the footsteps and cries of other demigods, but they were far away. Next to that, there was nothing. No birds or other animals, no rushing water even though it couldn’t be far away anymore and not even the sound of leafs moving in the wind.

“Will.” Nico whispered and his boyfriend nodded silently. He had noticed it as well and a concentrated look appeared on his face – a look that Nico had seen before during the battle against Gaea. Without thinking about it twice, he grabbed his sword and gave Will a sign to follow him. When the sound of a battle became louder, Nico and Will began to run and then they also heard something else. It was the cry of a monster which sent shivers down their spines. 

Nico had problems at getting his thoughts in order. How did they come into the camp? And why now? The question he didn’t ask himself was if this had anything to do with the appearance of the ghost a few nights ago. The answer was easy to see.

There was another sound of an explosion and this time, they could see what had caused it. Jason was sending flashes at their enemies and at the same time, Percy was attacking them with waves of water and Riptide which was shining in the sunlight.

Next to them, the children of Ares were fighting side by side with other members of the Apollo cabin. When one of them was hit by the tail of a big, snake-like monster, Will left Nico to help them immediately. Deep inside, a part of Nico was worried about him, but he pushed the thought aside quickly. This wasn’t the right time to get sentimental. He had to help his friends as well.

And with that, he raised his sword and stabbed a monster which had just noticed him. It vanished with a loud crack, but Nico didn’t let himself be irritated by this. He had fought against their kind many times and it wasn’t something to scare him. He’d seen worse.

When he noticed that some children of Ares were trying to fight off a monster the size of an elephant, he came to their aid while hitting its leg with his sword. The monster cried out in pain and the children of Ares used this distraction to attack again. This time, their enemy wasn’t that lucky anymore. The final move was made by Clarisse herself, who sent him back to Tartarus with a loud and angry cry.

“Nico, watch out!” Jason’s voice behind him yelled and Nico turned around just in time to see another monster with long fangs jumping at him. He had only enough time to raise his sword, which wasn’t enough. They fell to the ground together and Nico felt a sharp pain in his left arm where the claws had hit him. Without thinking about it any further, he used his powers to cover his opponent in shadows which were burning him like fire. They didn’t harm Nico himself, so he was able to grab his sword again and slid the monsters throat. It exploded and slowly, Nico was able to stand up again. For half a second, his eyes met the ones of Will, who had an alarmed look on his face. But right now there wasn’t the time for accusations. 

And so the battle continued, however it shouldn’t last long anymore. After some time, Nico found himself fighting side by side with Percy and Jason and no one was able to resist against the children of the big three. Even though their powers were completely different, they fitted each other very well right now and the combination of water, flashes and darkness was deadly to every monster who dared to cross their way.

* * *

No one knew why the monsters had been able to get into the borders of Camp Half-Blood. Some demigods had been injured, but luckily everyone of them would be alright soon. After they had returned out of the forest and informed the other campers about what had happened, hell had broken out. It took Chiron a long time to calm everyone down again and after that, he called out a council meeting immediately.

Nico and Will didn’t have much time to talk about what happened and before the other boy could say anything, Nico had apologized for using his powers. To the surprise of the others – and mostly to his own – Will had hugged Nico tightly and kissed him in front of the entire camp. After that, he’d held a speech about using his powers too much and how dangerous it was for Nico, who could just nod silently.

“I don’t understand. How were they able to get over the borders?” Percy asked and since no one knew the answer, they all looked at Chiron questioningly.

“To be honest, I don’t know how they did it.” He admitted and now some of the head counselors began to whisper with each other. “But we have to remember that it was not the first time that someone got into camp who should not have been able to do it.” At those words, he looked at Nico who nodded slowly.

“However, this is different.” He said loudly and now everyone’s attention turned towards him. “A ghost and a monster can’t be compared to each other. And first, I thought that maybe I was wrong when I said that there was a connection between those two incidents. Now I’m not sure anymore.”

“An attack on the camp a few days after a ghost told you that another war is about to start? Yeah, no connection at all.” Percy murmured and a few other people nodded. “So what are we going to do now? I mean, after everything that’s happened, we have to assume that there will be another attack on the camp soon.”

“We have to patrol at the borders more often.” Clarisse announced loudly and looked at Chiron. “And while doing that, we need more weapons. And wouldn’t it be good if we improve the training program as well?”

“It should have been done a long time ago…” The head counselor of the cabin of a minor god murmured and earned a reproachful look from Annabeth.

“Don’t you think that it’s more important to decide what we’re going to do to stop these attacks?” She asked and her gray eyes scanned everyone in the room determinedly.

After a few moments of silence, Chiron nodded. “Nevertheless, we must strengthen the borders of the camp and it would be an advantage if we train more often. If another attack will take place soon, we need to be ready for it. However, we have to find out who is responsible for all this.”

“Sadly, there aren’t prophecies anymore. That would have made everything easier.” Someone murmured, but Nico and the others shook their heads immediately.

“Believe me, they don’t make it easier. Just more complicated than it already is.” Percy said slowly and his expression was thoughtful. Among the demigods, he knew best what he was talking about. There was no one else whose life has been as controlled by prophecies as Percy’s.


	10. More Problems Ahead

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

Why didn't it surprise Nico that his dreams got worse after the events of the previous days? Well, maybe because after all, he still was a son of Hades. Or because his dreams have never been really nice. It didn't matter right now anyway.

Nico was standing in a forest. He didn't know how he got there or where the forest was. It was dark and cold. There were clouds covering the moon and the stars, so that it was difficult for Nico to see anything. However, that didn't mean that he couldn't  _ hear  _ anything as well.

First, it sounded like a river or a little stream, but when Nico followed the noises for a while, he realized that it were voices. The voices of other people and when his senses didn't deceive him, at least one of them was angry. Nico hesitated for half a second until he continued to move towards the source of the noises. He didn't know why he dispensed with his powers, but somehow, he had the feeling that he would be discovered if he did so. The voices sounded strange, like they were distorted in some way and Nico frowned. He had heard this kind of sounds some time ago, however he couldn't remember when or where.

He had to walk for several minutes before he could finally locate the place where the voices came from and when he could see it in the darkness, he would have liked to hit himself. Because he really knew that kind of noises. It was the sound of people speaking in a cave. And where did he hear that some time ago? Bingo! Underworld. As a child of Hades, he should have realized that earlier, shouldn't he?

He just wanted to set his foot on a stone in front of the cave when one of the voices began to shout and Nico froze in his movements. "Didn't I tell you to wait?" The angry voice of a man shouted and Nico hid himself behind a tree quickly. He didn't have the urge to get caught right now, even if it just was a dream.

"Yes, master. You did. But we thought -"

"I don't care what you're thinking! You are serving ME and you have to carry out MY orders! It doesn't matter if you have ideas or anything like that, it's not important and you should forget them as soon as possible! What am I saying, you should forget them IMMEDIATELY!" Suddenly, the voice stopped and Nico's sharp ears could make out the sound of someone breathing heavily.

"Master…?" the other voice asked hesitantly and it wasn't difficult to locate the fear in it.

"Stop that! That's better. And now take a few steps back... Good. It seems as if you aren't as hopeless as I thought. And now tell me if it worked. Your  _ plan _ ." Nico had to grimace at the mass of sarcasm in the last word and he could hear the other person murmur something.

"What did you say?" The man, who apparently didn't hear the reply as well, asked slowly and Nico's urge to take a look into the cave got stronger. However, he resisted it.

"The demigods…. My lord… the demigods, they… they… defeated us." Nico could barely hear the end of the sentence and as soon as it was finished, the other person began to shout again, this time even angrier as before.

"YOU STUPID, USELESS CREATURE! FAILURE I SHOULD CALL YOU! I WANT THE DEMIGODS DEAD!" At those words, Nico had to cover his mouth with both hands to remain silent. The demigods dead? Could this really be the man the ghost had spoken of? And was the incident they were talking about the attack on Camp Half-Blood the previous day?

"If you would have waited for my orders, they would never have been able to win this fight. They would not have seen it coming. The demigods would have been dead in the moment my forces entered their camp…. But now they are expecting another attack. Thanks to you, I will have to make a new plan. One which is able to succeed. And now we have to talk about your punishment."

"M… Master?" The other voice squealed, but it was too late. And it was also too late for Nico to run into the forest before the pained screams reached his ears.

* * *

When he opened his eyes, the first thing Nico noticed was the sun shining through one of the windows of the Hades cabin. Apparently, he had forgotten to close the curtains after the events of the previous day. He had just been too tired.

With a growl, he covered his face with the blanket again and turned around so that he was lying on his stomach now. For a few seconds, he just wished that it was dark again and that he could get more sleep, but suddenly the memories of his dream came back and Nico sat up immediately, every thought of more sleep vanished.

Closing his eyes, he tried to remember every second of the conversation he had heard. Yes, it had been about the attack on Camp Half-Blood and the person who had spoken wanted the demigods to be dead. And the poor fellow who had started the failed battle had to die a painful death. Now they were planning something else, which was going to be even more dangerous for the camp.

But who was the man who had spoken in the cave? Nothing about the voice or the choice of words showed anything about his identity. And the other person didn't say anything as well.  _ Master…  _ That could be everyone with a certain amount of power. Now they just had to find out who it was and what they could do to stop him.

Slowly, Nico stood up and searched a few clothes he could wear. At the end, he decided to take black jeans, a dark gray t-shirt and his usual black trainers. Will would be thrilled.

After he had closed the door of his cabin behind him, Nico covered his eyes for a few seconds before they got used to the sun. Why couldn't the Hades cabin stand in the shadows of a few trees or something like that? The first thing he saw were the children of Ares, wearing their armor and carrying weapons towards the forest. There, they wanted to develop new tactics which could help them against the monsters. Clarisse was leading them and when she saw Nico, she nodded at him. He returned the gesture and watched them walking towards the trees for a few more seconds. Then he turned away to search Will.

It seemed as if nearly the entire camp was already awake and everyone had something to do. Many people were going to train and others, like the children of Hephaestus, were trying to invent new technologies to defend the borders of Camp Half-Blood. Nico tried not to get too close to them since he feared to be asked silly questions and right now, he wasn't in the mood for it. The Poseidon cabin was still dark and so he assumed that Percy was still sleeping, but it didn't bother Nico. Somehow, he wanted that Will knew of his dream first. The others would be informed soon enough.

When he finally reached the Apollo cabin, one of Will's half-sisters who had been sitting in the grass stood up quickly. "Good morning Nico." She greeted him and he murmured an answer, which made the girl – Clara, he remembered – smile widely. "Will is in the infirmary, if you're looking for him."

"Thank you." Nico answered and couldn't stop himself from smiling a little bit as well. When he turned around to walk away again, he shook his head in amusement. Since when was he so nice?

"Watch out!" A voice behind him called and Nico took a few steps to the right just when two children of Hermes ran towards the infirmary. He didn't have to look at what they were carrying. The constricting feeling in his stomach told him enough. Suddenly, the door swung open and when Will saw the two boys and what they were carrying, he began to run towards them. However, he froze when he saw Nico and the look on his face. Nico saw his boyfriend become as white as a sheet and when the two sons of Hermes reached him, Will knelt down beside the person they were carrying.

Nico should have went to them to see if everything was alright. He could have said something to make them feel better. Everything would have been better than just to stand there and watch them from the distance, but right now his legs didn't obey the orders of his head.

It didn't take long before Will stood up again and one of the sons of Hermes cried out loudly. His brother wanted to say something to comfort him, but he just ran away towards their cabin. The other one hesitated and looked at Will, but he said something which made him follow his brother quickly. Now Will just stood there and looked at the girl lying in the grass, looking as if she was sleeping peacefully.

Slowly, two other children of Apollo left the infirmary and went to Will and the girl on the ground. Hesitantly, one of them took her into his arms while the other one covered her body with a white sheet. Right before they left, one of them whispered something into Will's ear, who looked up to meet Nico's gaze immediately.

Slowly, Nico began to walk towards Will and when he had nearly reached the son of Apollo, Will wrapped his strong arms around him and hid his face in Nico's neck. He didn't cry or say anything for a long time and Nico couldn't do anything as well. What could he have said?  _ I'm sorry. Don't be sad. People die every day and it's nothing too bad. We're going to end this battle.  _ Wouldn't those things make everything just worse? Or would they sound like empty promises?

So he couldn't do anything else than to hold Will in his arms and wait until the other one was able to look into his eyes again. "I'm sorry." Nico whispered and something that looked like a smile appeared on Will's lips.

"Thank you." Will murmured. "For being here." He added when Nico didn't understand him. He let go of his shoulders and took his hand. "Do you want to have breakfast…?" He asked hesitantly and Nico shook his head slowly.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you first." When he saw the uneasy expression on Will's face return, Nico would have liked to slap himself. What a bad choice of words. He kissed Will on his lips quickly and took his hand. "Come on, Sunshine." He smiled at Will to show him that everything was alright and the son of Apollo started to relax again. However, there was still this tension from what just happened and Nico couldn't blame him for it. He still had that uneasy feeling in his stomach as well, but what else could they do than to carry on? After the battle, a few demigods had died and the healers in the infirmary hadn't been able to help them anymore. Nico had been there with Will and the son of Apollo had cried for a long time. Sadly, this wasn't the right moment to cry over the dead. At least not for the two of them and their closest friends.

Nico was leading Will towards the forest where they could be alone for a few moments. There, he sat down on a tree trunk.

When he turned to Will, he saw that he was looking at him with a worried expression on his face. "Are you alright?" Will asked quietly and Nico nodded. "I mean, you look terrible, Death Boy." With his hand, he touched Nico's cheek carefully and then he let his fingers trace over the dark rings under his eyes. Nico closed them at his touch and sighed.

"Couldn't I ask you the same?" He muttered and Will swallowed. However, he didn't wait for a reply. "I've had a dream." Nico began and described everything that he'd seen and felt to his friend. Will listened silently and his eyes grew wider when Nico mentioned the death of the demigods and the new plan to reach this goal. When he finally finished his story, Will's eyes had the size of saucers and he was nearly as pale as Nico himself.

"We have to tell the others about it." He whispered and Nico nodded.

"It's time to go on a quest and find the one who is responsible for all this." He added and couldn't stop himself from feeling bad at those words. A quest without a prophecy? That couldn't end well, could it?

Will sighed. "Why does the life as a demigod have to be so hard?" He murmured and Nico couldn't answer his question.

"But we've got each other, don't we? And we wouldn't have met if one of us would be normal. So it can't be that bad after all."

Before Nico knew what was happening, Will had wrapped his arms around Nico's shoulders and kissed him passionately. He could feel Will smiling into the kiss and so he just kissed him back, allowing himself to forget all their problems for some time.


	11. Three Is A Good Number

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Will

“Do you really think this is a good idea?” Percy asked hesitantly and Will could see him frowning at Nico across the table. “I mean, without a prophecy and so on it’s going to get pretty difficult, isn’t it?”

Next to him, Nico shook his head. “It would be difficult with a prophecy as well.” He argued and Will looked at his boyfriend. Right after Nico had told him about his dream, they had talked to Chiron and now the head counselors of the cabins of Camp Half-Blood were sitting in the Big House and had to decide what they were going to do next. “Because I don’t think that it would give us a hint where to start the search for something useful.” Nico added and his expression was worried. This and the lack of sleep made him look even paler than usual and Will didn’t like it. He would have loved to drag the son of Hades back to his cabin and let him sleep for a few hours. Sadly, that wasn’t possible right now. Each of them was needed here.

“And besides, a quest is always dangerous. So that wouldn’t be anything new as well.” Will added to help Nico and the younger boy looked at him gratefully.

“Nevertheless, we have to decide who will go and where they start their quest.” Annabeth said loudly and many of the other people in the room nodded quietly. To Will’s surprise, many of them had remained silent since the meeting had started. Normally, everyone wanted to present his or her opinion and very often, that ended in chaos. Why was it different this time?

“But do you really think that a dream is prove enough to go out on a quest?” The head counselor of the Hermes cabin asked. His condescending tone and the way he was looking at Nico made Will stare at him angrily and he would have liked to say something mean to him. Suddenly, Nico squeezed Will’s hand and when he turned his head to look at him, Nico’s expression seemed to say ‘ _Don’t worry, it’s okay. I can deal with it._ ’ Slowly, Will relaxed again and nodded shortly. Then he turned his attention to the others again.

“It wasn’t just a dream.” Jason cut in and the son of Hermes raised his eyebrows. “First, there was this ghost on the grounds of Camp Half-Blood which shouldn’t be possible. Then, the tension started to rise and Nico and others got strange dreams. I think I don’t have to mention the attack yesterday. And now this. Aren’t these enough signs for something bad coming towards us?”

“Yes, I would believe it. However all those things happened to _him_!” He pointed at Nico “And no one else can prove it!” 

“Why shouldn’t we believe him?” Jason asked quietly and crossed his arms. “Nico has shown many times that he only wants us to be safe. Take the last war, for example. There he has done things no one would have even dared to think of, just to stop Gaea from waking up again.”

“And in the war against Kronos and the Titans, we fought side by side.” Percy added and many other demigods started to murmur approvingly.

“We are not here to discuss Nico’s trustworthiness.” Chiron cut in loudly and it didn’t take long until everyone was silent again. From the corner of his eyes, Will looked at Nico and to his surprise, he found his boyfriend smiling calmly at Chiron, Jason and Percy. “I believe him and what he has told us is very alarming. I have no idea who could be the one who plans to attack us again, but from what you say, he has to be very powerful.”

“And he’s got an army.” Percy added, however this wasn’t very helpful. Or reassuring.

“What about the others? Is Camp Jupiter in danger as well?” Will asked and looked around. Now many clueless faces were staring at him and normally, he would have started to feel uncomfortable. Luckily, Nico was holding his hand which stopped his heart from beating uncontrollably.

“First Camp Half-Blood, then Camp Jupiter…” Nico murmured and nodded slowly. “It’s going to be that way, I feel it.”

For a few moments, Chiron just looked at him thoughtfully. After a few moments, he nodded. ”That’s what I fear as well.” He admitted and closed his eyes as if it would prevent it from happening when he just thought of it long enough.

“So who will go?” Piper asked into the following silence and no one dared to answer that question.

“Maybe we should speak to someone from Camp Jupiter first…” The head counselor of the Hephaestus cabin began hesitantly. “I mean, when they want to attack the Romans as well, they should also be able to decide what we’re going to do now, right?”

“Two demigods from Camp Half-Blood, one from Camp Jupiter.” Jason said after some time and Chiron raised his eyebrows at him. “It has started here. I’m sure they’ll understand.”

“And if they don’t want to take part on the quest?”

“We still can find one more person who wants to go with them.”

“But who are ‘they’?” Will turned to Annabeth who had asked the last question and he saw Percy and Jason exchange uncertain looks.

“They have to think about it wisely.” Chiron said and looked at all of them, frowning. “It is going to be very dangerous and none of us can even assume what they will have to face. And this time, I’m afraid that there aren’t many people who can help them on their quest.”

Again, a silence followed his words and after some time, Will thought that no one would ever say something again. Suddenly, he felt Nico move next to him and when he turned his head, he saw a determined expression on his boyfriend’s face. “I’ll go.” Nico announced loudly and now everyone else turned his or her attention towards him as well. 

“Nico… are you sure?” Will’s heart seemed to be frozen and only Chiron’s hesitant voice took him back to reality.

Nico swallowed and nodded. “Yes, I can’t explain it, but somehow, I have the feeling that it’s me who has to do this.”

Chiron looked at him for a few more seconds before he nodded thoughtfully. “I know what you mean and in the past few days, that presumption has been creeping up on me as well.” He admitted and frowned. “A son of Hades who goes on a quest to find the person who is responsible for the darkness that is hanging over us…”

“You won’t go out there without me!” Those words had left Will’s mouth before he even knew that he wanted to say them and now many shocked faces weren’t turned to Nico anymore. However, he didn’t care. Everything that mattered was Nico’s expression right now and Will saw two different things there. Disapproval and gratefulness at the same time.

“You don’t have to do that.” Nico was whispering now and Will doubted that any of the other people in the room could hear him. “I can take care of myself very well.” Did he imagine it or was Nico sounding a little insecure?

Will took Nico’s hands and squeezed them. “I know that you could do this alone, but I want to help you. And I want to be there for you if you need me.” He looked into Nico’s eyes and smiled slightly. “I mean, if you don’t want me to come -“

“Will, are you crazy?” Nico asked and Will could only stare at him when his boyfriend actually started to laugh. “You really think that I don’t want you to join me on the quest? I was rather thinking about you and your safety! Of course I want you by my side.”

For a few seconds, he could only stare at Nico without being able to say something. So he just shook his head. “My safety.” Will murmured slightly. “I don’t think that anything really bad can happen as long as we’re together.”

Nico, who was still grinning at him, chuckled softly. “I hope you’re right, Sunshine. Otherwise, we should talk again and I can already say that it won’t look good for you then.”

With a last smile in Nico’s direction, Will turned towards Chiron and the other head counselors again. They were all pretending to do something right now and he was grateful that they’d given him and Nico at least a little space to exchange a few words before the meeting continued. “I’ll go with Nico.” Will announced loudly and no one in the room seemed to be surprised. Percy even grinned at him widely and Jason looked at him forcefully, which made Will feel a little uncomfortable. He already knew that the son of Jupiter wanted to talk to him later. 

“Does anyone want to say something against their decision to go on the quest together?” Chiron asked and it was silent in the room. The centaur nodded with a pleased expression on his face and turned to Nico and Will. “We will contact the representatives of Camp Jupiter and you can set out on your quest as soon as you’ve found the third member of your group. I don’t like to say this, but you all know that we have to make haste. And while they have left the camp to find information about our enemy, we have to make plans for the defenses and train even harder. It will not be easy, however I am sure that we are going to win the next fight when we only stand together and help each other whenever it is necessary.”

* * *

“This is bad…” Reyna murmured and covered her face with her hands. “Very, very bad. We have to do something.” Slowly, she looked up again and Will could see the concern in her eyes even through the Iris message. “Do you really think that a quest without a prophecy can be successful?”

Next to Will, Nico nodded. “A prophecy wouldn’t make this easier, would it? Yes, we would have something to hold on to, but it’s a riddle itself and prophecies can cause trouble and make you believe the wrong things as well. Ask Percy if you have the time, I’m sure he can tell you a long story about it.” He paused for a few moments and frowned at their friends from Camp Jupiter. “What I wanted to say is that we have to do something, just like Reyna said and we can’t wait for a miracle to happen. We have to act right now, if we want it or not. And I have the feeling that before we’re going to leave the camp there will be something that can help us.”

“And what do you think will help you?” Hazel asked and raised her eyebrows at her brother.

However, Nico shrugged. “I don’t know. You just have to trust me, I think.”

“We do.” Will assured him immediately and Nico smiled when Reyna, Hazel and Frank nodded as well.

“And now you want us to decide if one of us will go with you?” Frank asked again and this time it was Will who nodded.

“This isn’t just about Camp Half-Blood. They will attack you as well. We don’t know if it’ll happen when we’re still fighting or when our camp is…” He hesitated, not wanting to finish that sentence. _When our camp is already lost._

“Fact is that you aren’t safe as well and we want to give you a chance to help us win this war before it has really started.” Nico cut in quickly and Will shot him a grateful look.

“What a stupid question.” Hazel murmured and rolled her eyes. “Of course we want to help you! You don’t even have to ask.”

Reyna and Frank nodded. “Without Greeks who like to do stupid things, the world would be far too boring!” Frank added, which earned him a reproachful look from Hazel, who was sitting next to him.

“So now we still have to decide who is going to join you on your quest.” Reyna murmured before the others could start to argue. There was a strange expression on her face, like a mixture of determination and uncertainty. Will didn’t know what he should think of it, but apparently, Nico seemed to understand what she was thinking. It shouldn’t surprise Will, at least the two of them had become friends after their long journey with the Athena Parthenos. Nevertheless, there was this strange feeling in his stomach again that was – according to one of his brothers – jealousy.

“You can admit that you want to come with us, Reyna.” Nico said loudly and ripped Will out of his thoughts.

Right now, Reyna looked like a child who had been caught at stealing chocolate from the cupboard of its parents and a sheepish smile appeared on her lips. Unlike Nico, Hazel, Frank and Will looked at her questioningly and after some time, Reyna couldn’t stand it anymore and laughed softly. “He’s right, I was thinking about going on that quest myself. It’s been some time since I’ve been out there myself and I don’t feel like I can do anything as long as I’m sitting here at Camp Jupiter.”

“And what should we do here without you?” Frank asked and Will could see the worry in his eyes. They were a team and without Reyna, Frank would have to deal with many things alone.

“Hazel can help you as long as I’m on the quest.” Reyna answered immediately and looked at Hazel, who nodded slowly.

“If you tell me what exactly I have to do it won’t be a problem.” She murmured and after a few more moments, her expression became more confident.

Reyna smiled gratefully and turned towards Nico and Will again. “So when will we start?” She asked and Will had to grin at the excitement in her voice.

“As soon as we’ve got a place to start we can go.” Nico replied and frowned. “I think during the next three days we should be able to figure something out.”

Reyna nodded and the look on her face became thoughtful again. “We have to meet somewhere.”

“We’ll pick you up at Camp Jupiter. When we shadow travel, we’ll be there in a few moments.” Nico must have seen Will’s expression since he squeezed his hand reassuringly. “You don’t have to worry, we can take Mrs O’Leary. Then I won’t have to do anything.”

Slowly, Will relaxed again and he nodded with a sigh. “But I’ll have an eye on you, Death Boy.”

“Okay, so we’ll meet in three days at the borders of Camp Jupiter.” Reyna said into the silence that followed Will’s words and they all looked at each other as if they wanted to make sure that no one had doubts about their plan.

“That’s the plan.” Will replied Nico nodded.

“Then let’s hope that we’ll find a way to end all this.” Reyna added just before the Iris message in front of them began to vanish and Will and Nico were alone again.


	12. Another Dream

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this chapter as well! We'll get to know more about the quest. 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

_He was standing in the same forest again. It was dark, but this time the stars were shining through the branches of the trees around him. Did he just imagine it or were they brighter than usual?_

_It was cold and Nico realized that he was just wearing a t-shirt. He ignored the fact that he shivered. This time, he began to walk towards the cave without hesitation. He knew that he had to be more careful when he got closer, otherwise something bad could happen._

_Why didn’t he hear the voices? Last night, he had heard the man speaking with his servant. Shouldn’t they be there as well? But what if… What if the dreams showed him a part of the reality? If they weren’t there right now, Nico couldn’t see them and then they couldn’t notice his presence as well. And what if he was wrong…?_

_He swallowed and continued to walk towards the cave. He couldn’t just stop and go back. They needed to know more about this place and what was being planned here. Maybe he could find out something useful. They needed it very much. When he got closer to the entrance, Nico stopped and closed his eyes to listen. He didn’t hear anything so he sneaked closer to the cave. But before he could have a look inside, a noise behind him made Nico turn around._

_He wanted to reach for his sword, but it wasn’t there. Stupid dreams! Why couldn’t he have his weapon there when he needed it? Nico did the first thing he could think of. He hid behind the next tree. He tried to sense what was coming towards him with his powers, but to his surprise, they didn’t work as well. Nico's heart began to beat faster. He didn’t have a weapon and why on earth were his powers gone? He tried to push away the panic that was building up inside of him. He had to stay calm now. He had been in situations like this many times and he had always managed them. And this was a dream, wasn’t it? So nothing bad could happen to him._

_He didn’t dare to breathe, afraid that the sound could tell the other person that he was hiding there. Nico tried to listen closely, but it was silent in the forest. He was sure that he’d heard footsteps before and doubted that he had imagined it. So he just stayed behind that tree and waited. If there was someone else, he would have to make noises soon. The other person couldn’t stay there all the time, however Nico could. This was a dream and he would have to wake up. Even if that meant that someone at Camp would have to wake him._

“ _You don’t have to hide from me.” A voice said into the silence and Nico shivered. His heart was racing and he breathed in deeply. That’s when he realized that he knew that voice. He had heard it before, just a few days ago. “I am not going to hurt you, my Lord.”_

_The voice belonged to Maria, the ghost he had met at Camp Half-Blood. Slowly, Nico walked around the tree, ready to run away as fast as possible. However, his worries were unnecessary. Maria was standing between the trees, close to the entrance of the cave. And she was alone. She looked exactly the same as when Nico had met her the first time. The only difference was that she didn’t look too scared. Nico looked from her to the cave nervously. What if someone was there and would see them? Or if they would come back soon?_

“ _You don’t have to worry, my Lord.” Maria said when she noticed Nico glancing at the cave. “No one will come here tonight, we are alone.”_

“ _How do you know that?” Nico asked, surprised at how calm he sounded._

“ _They left to prepare for what is going to come.” Maria said simply and began to walk towards the cave. She gestured for Nico to follow him and he did without hesitation. He believed Maria. He couldn’t explain why, but somehow, he had the feeling that she didn’t want to betray them or to cause any trouble._

“ _And what is going to come?” Nico asked, even if he feared that he already knew the answer._

“ _War. War and blood and destruction.” Maria said and shook her head sadly. “And this is the place where it all starts.”_

_Nico looked around. The cave wasn’t as big as he had imagined. The walls and the floor were smooth and it looked as if someone had sanded them. There were some torches on the walls which let the cave shine in a mysterious light. Nico didn’t like the looks of it. When he looked around more closely, he saw that there were many weapons and parts of armor lying on the floor. Some of them looked like they weren’t finished yet. At the end of the cave, there was a big table with one chair standing in front of it. And on the table lay a map. Nico inhaled sharply when he saw what it showed._

_He turned around to Maria, his eyes wide. “You knew about this, didn’t you?” He asked and she nodded slowly._

“ _That is the reason why I came to warn you.”_

“ _Are you also responsible for my dreams? The ones of this cave?” Nico asked, but Maria shook her head._

“ _Someone else sent you the dreams, I am not strong enough for this. Coming to your camp nearly cost me all of my energy, there isn’t much left. I don’t think that I will be able to reappear after tonight.”_

_Nico swallowed. “And why did you come here tonight?”_

“ _To show you this. This place and the plans of your enemies. You have to come here again, my Lord. This is where you will find out what you have to do. Where you will find out what is going to happen.”_

“ _But where are we?” Nico asked, his thoughts racing. This was the last time he could speak to Maria. He needed as much information as possible. Somehow, he had the feeling that they were running out of time and that Maria was going to vanish soon. The light around her seemed to fade._

“ _You will have to find out on your own. But the spirits will help you.”_

“ _The spirits? But who do you mean?” Nico asked. There were so many spirits…_

“ _Find the man in the suit with the hat in the capital that is none in this land.” Maria said slowly. “That is all I can tell you.”_

_Nico frowned. “What do you mean by that? The capital that isn’t one here? Can’t you explain more?” He was talking quickly now, needing to know more. But the light around Maria was fading very fast now. Nico doubted that she would stay longer than a few minutes. If they even had that much time._

“ _My time is up, my Lord. I can’t tell you more. You will have to find out where you have to go on your own. I wish you luck in the battles that are going to come. You can win this war, if you just stand together…” With those words, the ghost of Maria vanished and everything around Nico turned dark._

* * *

He woke up to the sound of someone knocking at the door of the Hades cabin. Nico groaned and sat up slowly. He already knew who was waiting outside. But should he really open that door? He had just decided to ignore it and sleep some more when the memories of his dream returned. Before he knew what was happening, Nico stood up and searched for the first clothes he could find. A dark jeans and a black t-shirt. Nico put the clothes on quickly and opened the door of the cabin.

Of course Will was standing in front of him. Nico didn’t expect anyone else. Will looked worried, but when he saw Nico, his expression changed and a wide smile appeared on his lips. “Good morning, Nico.” He said and Nico thought that he wanted to say something else. However, Will noticed the look on Nico’s face and his smile vanished again. “What happened?”

Nico must have looked very worried and he cursed inwardly. Why was he so bad at hiding his feelings? Especially around Will. The other demigod could read him like an open book sometimes. “We need to talk. I had a dream.” Nico said and before Will could reply something, he grabbed his hand and pulled him into the cabin.

“Nico, what’s going on?” Will asked and ignored the chaos in the room. Nico was grateful for that. They sat down on the bed next to Nico’s (you couldn’t sit down on his bed, it was too messy) and he told Will everything about his dream. When he had finished, the son of Apollo was very pale and he looked as worried as Nico was feeling himself. “We have to tell the others about this.” Will said and Nico nodded.

“I just wanted to tell you about it first.” Nico hesitated. “I would understand if you didn’t want to come with us after this…”

“Wait, what are you saying?” Will frowned at Nico. “You can’t think that I’ll let you go out there alone, Death Boy! It’s far too dangerous. You need someone to look after you.”

“Reyna wasn’t too bad the last time we were out on our own.” Nico muttered and now Will seemed to get angry.

“The last time you were out on your own as you call it, you nearly killed yourself by transporting that statue across the world!” Will said. “What if you get in trouble? When you get injured? Or even worse, when you start to fade again? There’s no way that I’ll stay here at Camp Half-Blood while you leave, Nico!” Will’s anger surprised him. Will didn’t seem to be afraid of the dangers on this quest. All he could think of was that something might happen to Nico himself.

“But it could be dangerous for you as well!” Nico cut in and Will shook his head. He laughed and there was a frustrated expression on his face.

“I don’t care as long as I can look after you.” Will muttered and leaned forward to kiss Nico. It wasn’t a light kiss like the ones they had shared before. This time, there was an urgency in Will that made Nico shiver. It seemed as if Will wanted to show Nico that he would never let him go. That they belonged together. Will’s hands were on Nico’s shoulders now and before he knew what he was doing, he had his arms wrapped around Will’s waist. Will moaned into the kiss and pulled Nico even closer.

Later, Nico couldn’t tell anymore how long they stayed there like this. When they finally let go of each other, both breathing heavily, Will looked into his eyes for a long time. “I’m coming with you, no matter what happens.”

Nico just nodded. “Alright.” He muttered, glad that Will didn’t decide against coming with them on this quest. He didn’t know what he would have done without him.

* * *

After Nico was fully clothed and had brushed his teeth, he left the Hades cabin. Since breakfast was already over, he went directly to the Big House to tell Chiron about his dream. Will had left some time before, saying that he still had a few things to do before a meeting. Nico didn’t ask what it was. He knew that Will would tell him about this later.

Chiron had been very worried when Nico told him about his dream. He agreed to call the other head counselors for a meeting immediately. Will was the first one to arrive – and to Nico’s surprise, he carried two plates with breakfast with him. When he looked at it more closely, Nico saw that it was his favorite food. Will noticed his look and winked at Nico. “We missed breakfast, remember?”

Nico laughed and sat down next to Will. “You’re amazing.” He said and Will smiled widely.

They started to eat their breakfast and soon, the other head counselors arrived. Most of them didn’t look very happy about this meeting, especially the head counselor of the Hephaestus cabin who was covered in something that looked like oil.

When Nico had told them about his dream, they all looked at each other in silence for some time.

“That doesn’t sound good.” Percy muttered and next to him, Jason nodded silently. Everyone in the room looked worried and Nico thought that the new head counselors who didn’t experience a real battle until now looked a little sick.

“And what does it mean, the spirits will help you?” Piper asked, looking around as if someone knew the answer to that question.

“And what about the man in the suit with the hat in the capital that is none?” Annabeth added and frowned. Nico knew her well enough to say that it bothered her not to know the answers. Percy seemed to notice the anger of his girlfriend as well since he squeezed her hand on the table. Annabeth sighed and relaxed a little bit.

“We will have to find out what it means before Nico and Will start their journey to Camp Jupiter.” Chiron said. “They need a place to start their search for the cave. And I think that Maria tried to tell you where you have to go.”

Nico nodded. “It would have been easier if she had more time… But coming here to Camp Half-Blood had nearly taken all her energy. It was a surprise that she even managed to appear in my dream.”

“But didn’t she also say that someone else sent you the dreams? Someone stronger?” Will asked. “Maybe that person also helped her to cross the borders of the Camp and to enter your dreams.”

Nico nodded slowly. It could be possible that Will was right about this. “But that still doesn’t explain who exactly sent me those dreams.”

“Whoever it is, he has to be on our side. Otherwise, he wouldn’t try to warn us, would he?” Percy asked and a few others nodded in agreement.

“I doubt that we’ll find out who it is soon.” Jason said and Nico agreed with him. “And I don’t think that it matters right now. We have to find out what the ghost meant with the man in the suit and the capital.”

“I’ll try to find something useful.” Annabeth said. “Maybe there are records which can help us.”

“It’s sad that we don’t have a computer here.” The head counselor of the Hermes cabin said. “Maybe we could find out something that way.”

“But it’s too dangerous to leave the Camp, remember?” Clarisse asked and the boy nodded slowly, looking disappointed.

“We could also ask Rachel and Ella about this.” Piper suggested and Chiron nodded.

“I already thought about informing Rachel. However, she is at school at the moment, so it would be difficult to reach her. And I’m not sure if it is a good idea to call her in a time like this. It could be dangerous for her to come here.”

“Maybe we should try to figure something out on our own then?” Piper asked carefully and Chiron nodded.

“I’ll think about talking to Rachel again.” He just said.

“We can send an Iris-Message to Camp Jupiter and tell Reyna and the others about this. Maybe they know something that can help us.” Nico said and now Chiron nodded.

“They have to know about your dream anyway. It’s too important to keep it secret from the other Camp. Especially after the map you described.”

Nico swallowed. On the table in the cave had been a map. A map of the US. And the exact positions of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter were marked with red crosses. So their enemy knew the locations of both Camps. The thought scared Nico. He already knew that Camp Half-Blood’s location wasn’t secret to them since there already had been an attack. But he had hoped that they wouldn’t be able to find Camp Jupiter. The place where Hazel was. And so many others who were in danger now.

Under the table, Will took Nico’s hand and squeezed it. When he looked at his boyfriend, Nico saw Will’s lips twitched. ‘ _It’s going to be alright_ ’ his expression said. Nico hoped that he was right. As for himself, he didn’t have too much hope at the moment. He had wanted some peace after everything that had happened, but apparently, it wasn’t possible. But when had life ever been easy for a demigod? And especially for a son of Hades? Probably never.

The next hour, they talked about plans for defending Camp Half-Blood. Annabeth and Clarisse were already making big plans and many other head counselors had ideas as well. Nico tried to listen to the conversation as good as possible, but his thoughts always returned to the woman fading in front of him in the cave.


	13. Plans And Problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

“We’ll think about it.” Reyna promised and next to her, Hazel and Frank nodded in agreement.

Jason smiled at them. “Thank you.” He said and Nico forced himself to smile at his friends as well. After the council was over, Jason and Nico had gone to the Zeus Cabin to inform their friends at Camp Jupiter about Nico’s dream. Since the others had better things to do (Will had to work at the infirmary), only the two of them had been left to inform Reyna, Frank and Hazel.

“You’ll still come in two days, won’t you?” Reyna asked Nico and he nodded slowly.

“Unless we figure out where to start our search for that mysterious man. But somehow, I doubt it.” He admitted.

“Don’t give up yet. Maybe someone will figure out what Maria’s message means.” Hazel said and her confident smile made Nico relax a bit. He sighed.

“I hope you’re right.” He muttered. Next to him, Jason smiled at Nico as well.

“Come on, when was the last time something didn’t work?” He asked and Nico couldn’t stop himself from looking at Jason skeptically.

“Well, there were a few incidents…” He started and when he looked at his friends from Camp Jupiter, he saw that Hazel and Frank were exchanging looks as well.

Jason sighed loudly. “Okay, I know, normally things don’t work out that well. But why can’t it be different this time? We have to think positive about all this! After all, we’re all in danger.”

“We’re demigods, we’re always in danger.” Reyna said, but she nodded. “However, you’re right, Jason. We have to figure out what it means and where we have to start our quest. Otherwise, we’ll run out of time.”

“Sounds familiar to me…” Frank muttered and Nico closed his eyes for a few moments. During the last war, time had been something they didn’t have… He hoped that it would be different now. But they were already late, weren’t they? Their enemy was already planning to attack the camps… Images started to appear in Nico’s head. Being trapped by the giants. Their journey with the Athena Parthenos. Tartarus.

“Nico, are you alright?” Reyna asked and Nico opened his eyes again. However, he couldn’t quite forget the images of Tartarus he had just seen again. He hadn’t thought about that for some time now… Why did it have to come back? “You look so pale.” The concern in Reyna’s voice made Nico smile.

“I’m fine, just worried about all those dreams and what Maria said.” He said quickly and Reyna didn’t look convinced. However, she didn’t ask further questions. He was grateful for that.

“So we’ll try to find out as much as possible about this man and the capital.” Reyna said. “And we’ll talk again tomorrow, maybe one of us will be successful.”

Nico nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

“And look out for possible enemies. They know where Camp Jupiter is.” Jason warned the others for the third time by now. “There might be an attack.”

This time, Frank nodded seriously. “We’ll be careful. But look out as well. They’ve already attacked you. They could come again.”

Jason nodded. “We’re already working on our defenses.” They said goodbye once more and then the image of Reyna, Hazel and Frank vanished. Now Nico and Jason were alone in the cabin.

“What were you thinking?” Jason asked and Nico frowned at him. “You had this look on your face, as if you were thinking of something terrible. I saw it on you sometimes back on our quest.”

Nico wanted to shrug and tell Jason that it was nothing. That they had just imagined the absent expression on his face. However, he didn’t think that it would work. Jason knew him too well for this. So he just sighed. “I thought about many things.” He admitted. “Mostly about the events in the war with the giants. I don’t know why. It just came to my mind when Reyna said that we don’t have much time left…” He shrugged. “I’ll be fine.”

Jason looked at him with a worried expression on his face. “Nico…” He began hesitantly and looked as if he wanted to put his hand on his shoulder. However, he seemed to decide that it was better not to get closer to the younger boy. Maybe Jason thought that Nico would run away or something like that. “I’m sure we can win this fight. We have all the information we need for your quest, we just have to figure it out. And both Camps are preparing for a fight. So we’ll be ready when they come, even if you shouldn’t be back then. But this time, I really think that everything will be alright.” He smiled slightly. “Or don’t you trust me with this?”

Nico raised his eyebrows slowly. “Since when are you so confident, Jason?” He asked slowly.

Jason shrugged. “I don’t know. During the war with Gaea, I didn’t feel that confident. Back then, I always thought that we were going to lose. Piper had been the one who gave us hope there. Maybe spending so much time with her makes me more confident as well? Does that make sense?”

Now Nico couldn’t stop himself from chuckling. “Maybe, or she just used her Charmspeak to convince you that everything will be alright.” He said with a grin. Somehow, the conversation with Jason had calmed him down a little bit.

“She wouldn’t do that!” Jason said immediately, though he didn’t look convinced.

“Why don’t you just ask her about this?” Nico joked.

“Ask me about what?” A new voice from the door of the cabin asked. Nico and Jason turned around to see Piper standing there, her arms crossed.

“How much of this did you hear?” Jason asked quietly.

“Enough.” Piper answered simply and when he saw the look on her face, Nico made his way to the door quickly.

“I think I have to go, see if the others already found out something about that man and the capital.” He muttered. When he got closer to the door, Piper stepped aside and allowed Nico to leave. He turned to Jason once more and smiled quickly, hoping that Piper wouldn’t be too hard with her boyfriend. Then he left the cabin.

* * *

He walked towards the infirmary slowly. Nico didn’t like the thoughts of Tartarus and everything else that had happened to him coming to his mind again. During the past weeks, his nightmares had almost vanished. The dreams about Tartarus just came again when he had a really bad day. He had been grateful for that and hoped that he wouldn’t start getting those nightmares again. He needed to focus on the quest now. Maybe he should talk to Percy and Annabeth about this. They would understand him, after all, they had been in Tartarus as well… And he knew that they both still had nightmares very often.

Or could he tell Will about this? Nico didn’t like the idea of telling his boyfriend about those dreams. About the fact that he’d been in Tartarus. There were only a few people at Camp Half-Blood who knew about this. The crew of the Argo II of course and Chiron. Everyone knew that Percy and Annabeth had fallen into Tartarus and closed the Doors of Death there. But no one ever mentioned Nico’s role in all this. Mostly, Nico feared that Will would be disappointed because he didn’t tell him about it. Or would he understand that it was very difficult to talk about those things? That he couldn’t really explain it? With Percy and Annabeth, it was different. They knew what he was talking about. But Will was always so positive. Could he understand that horrible journey Nico had faced?

Someone called his name and Nico stopped. He turned around to see Percy running towards him. He looked excited. Nico wanted to sigh. Why did Percy Jackson always have to turn up when he was already thinking of him?

“Nico, I think we’ve found something.” Percy said with a slight smile. “Annabeth found this old book in the Big House, it’s about history and such things. Will you come and see it yourself?” He asked, still smiling. However, his smile vanished when he looked at Nico more closely and Percy frowned. “Are you alright?”

Nico nodded slowly. Should he be honest to Percy? It wasn’t the right moment to talk about such things, but maybe later they wouldn’t have the time. “Yeah, I’ve just been thinking about a few things. You know, back in the war… That certain place…”

Percy’s face darkened and he put a hand on Nico’s shoulder. Suddenly, he looked much older than he really was. And very tired. “I know, Nico. I know…” He muttered and Nico regretted starting with this. “My nightmares about it won’t vanish. And I think Annabeth dreams of it as well…” He looked absent now. “I would love to help her with this, but how can you fight the dreams a person has?” He sighed and took a step back again. Suddenly, the sadness in his eyes vanished and a determined look appeared on his face. “But it won’t be like that again. This time, we’ll succeed without incidents like that. We must win.” 

Nico nodded slowly. He didn’t know what to say right now.

“So come on, Annabeth’s waiting for us.” Percy said and together, they walked towards the Big House again.

Annabeth was sitting in front of a table that was covered with books and maps. She looked distracted and was just reading in a very big, old book. It looked like it would fall apart soon.

“I’m so close, but I can’t find the last piece that is missing.” Annabeth muttered and Nico exchanged a look with Percy. Was she talking to them or did she just talk to herself. Percy shrugged.

Annabeth looked up at them. “There are a few cities in the US that have the names of capitals in different countries all over the world.” She started as if she was telling them a story. “I’ve informed myself about all of them. Having thought about it closely, there are only two cities that could possibly be the places where you have to start your quest. However, we still have to find out which city it is.”

“And those to possible cities are…?” Nico asked and looked at the map in front of Annabeth. There were far too many red crosses and circles.

“Here and here.” Annabeth said and pointed at two spots on the map that were marked in blue.

Nico frowned. “Athens and London?” He asked and Annabeth nodded.

Next to him, Percy raised his eyebrows. “How did you exclude the others?”

“I’ve just thought about it logically.” Annabeth said as if it would explain everything. However, Nico didn’t understand and Percy’s expression told him that he didn’t know what his girlfriend was talking about as well. Annabeth seemed to see it too. She sighed. “Don’t think about it, it doesn’t matter anyway. Now we have to find out which city it is.”

“Wouldn’t a man in a suit be more likely in London than in Athens?” Percy asked and Annabeth looked surprised.

“Why do you think that?”

Percy shrugged. “Don’t people in Greece normally wear other clothes? I mean, it’s warm there. And when I think of London, I always see people in suits.”

Nico nodded slowly. To be honest, this sounded logical to him. In a strange way.

Annabeth frowned. “I’ll have to think about it. I wanted to inform myself about the history of the two cities now.”

Nico and Percy exchanged a look. She didn’t want them to help here, did she?

“Maybe you can go to Clarisse and help her with the defenses of the camp, Percy.” Annabeth suggested and Percy relaxed.

“Sounds good to me.” He smiled, happy that he didn’t have to read history books.

“So you just wanted to tell me that you’ve found two possible cities?” Nico asked and Annabeth nodded. “You’re doing a great job, Annabeth.” Nico said and Annabeth smiled.

“I would be much better if you leave now.” She joked, however the two boys didn’t have to hear that twice since they left her alone with the books very quickly.

* * *

When Nico closed the door of the infirmary behind him, the first thing he saw was Will kneeling next to the bed of an injured camper. It was a girl from the Hermes cabin, however Nico didn’t know her name anymore. She had been injured during the attack at the camp. Will whispered calming words, however the girl looked afraid. Somehow, Nico knew that she feared another attack. “It’s going to be alright, we’ll be successful at our quest.” Nico heard Will say when he got closer.

When he heard footsteps behind him, Will turned around slowly. A smile appeared on his lips when he saw that it was Nico. However, the smile turned into worry as soon as he looked closer at him. “Don’t worry so much, Lara. You have to relax now so that your injuries can heal. We’ll look after you again later.” Will stood up and gestured for Nico to follow him.

Once they were alone, Will frowned at Nico. “What happened? You look terrible, Nico.” He said in a worried tone. However, Nico didn’t reply. He just wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and hid his face at Will’s chest. Will stroked Nico’s back slowly and Nico knew that he was confused. “Nico, what’s going on?” Will asked quietly, sounding a little helpless now.

Slowly, Nico let go of his boyfriend again. “It’s nothing, I’ve just thought about a few bad things… You know that stuff.” He said and remembered the times after the war when Will had been sitting on his bed all night, watching over Nico’s sleep. Of course Nico didn’t know that Will was doing something like this at that time. He just told it Nico a few days ago.

“Nico…” Will whispered, but he shook his head.

“Let’s not talk about this now. Maybe later.” Will didn’t look happy, but he nodded. “Annabeth has found something.” Nico continued and told him about the cities Annabeth had found.

“So there are two possible places where we can start our quest.” Will said and looked across the room thoughtfully. For now, he had forgotten about Nico’s problems.

“I think Annabeth will find out which city it is. She has so many books there and she’s smart.” Nico said. “And others are searching for information as well. However, I doubt that they’ll find something Annabeth didn’t.”

Will laughed. “She would be furious if she missed something.”

Nico nodded. “So now we just have to prepare for the journey and once Reyna joined us at Camp Jupiter, we can start our quest.”

“You’re glad that she comes with us, aren’t you?”

Nico nodded. “On our last journey, we’ve become friends. And I think it’ll remind me of the good old times when she’s with us. Even if Coach Hedge will be missing.” He chuckled. “It had been an interesting journey.”

“If you wouldn’t have been close to death all the time.” Will muttered darkly.

“We all knew that it would be dangerous when we started the quest.” Nico said simply.

“But you weren’t even part of the quest. You and Reyna didn’t have to be there.” Will sounded frustrated now, as always when he thought about the bad condition Nico had been in after the war with Gaea’s forces.

“I did.” Nico replied. “They wouldn’t have made it without me. You know that, Will.” He said softly. “And we succeeded. We won.”

“I don’t want you to be in so much danger again.” Will whispered.

“I won’t.” Nico whispered back. “And do you want to know why?”

Will nodded silently.

“Now you’re coming with me.” Nico whispered and wrapped his arms around Will’s shoulders. Will wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him closer. And then they kissed.


	14. A Talk On The Beach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Will

Will couldn’t sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, images started to appear in his head. Many incoherent images that didn’t even make sense. But they did one thing. They scared Will. And he was angry because of it. Normally, he didn’t have too many bad dreams. Other campers like Nico, Percy and Jason had nightmares far too often. Probably because their dads were such powerful gods. Will would never get dreams like the others did and he was glad. Maybe the gods just thought that he wasn’t important enough to see things in his sleep? Will didn’t know.

However, he didn’t like the fact that he couldn’t sleep. After this night, there would only be one more left at Camp Half-Blood before they would start their quest. And Will wanted to enjoy the last nights in his own bed. Who knew when he would see it again?

The images changed very fast. He saw the attack on Camp Half-Blood a few days ago. Then an army of monsters walking towards the camp. The war against Gaea’s forces. Injured demigods whom he couldn’t help anymore. And worst of all, he saw Nico. But not like he was now. He saw Nico like he was during the war with the giants. Far too pale and too skinny. There was this sad expression on the boy’s face, like he had already accepted the fact that he was going to die. And he was fading. Will had noticed it the moment he had seen him back then. All the darkness in Nico’s eyes, the coldness that was surrounding him. It had scared him. And it scared him even more now. He would do anything to prevent that from happening again.

But why didn’t the fear that Nico would do something stupid on their quest disappear? Nico had promised to look after himself, to be careful. He said that he wouldn’t use too much of his powers, only when it was necessary. Will hoped that he wouldn’t have to do any of this, but who could be sure? Maybe they would get in terrible danger and Nico had to use his powers? But wasn’t there another way? Maybe Will could stop him from that when it was necessary… But what could he do? He was just a son of Apollo without special powers. Next to his boyfriend or many other demigods, he was nothing. Of course he could heal people and it was important as well, but in a fight, Will couldn’t do too much. He had practiced fighting with a sword very much and he was getting better, but was it enough? He wasn’t so sure.

With a sigh, Will stood up and walked to the window of the Apollo cabin, careful not to wake his brothers and sisters who were still asleep. The sun was already rising and Will doubted that he could sleep anymore. He got dressed quickly and left the cabin. While he was walking through the camp aimlessly, the images of his dream appeared in his head again. He was scared that something bad would happen soon. And most of all, he was scared because of Nico.

He didn’t want his boyfriend to get in danger again. Nico didn’t have a happy life until recently and Will feared that more terrible events would follow now. He hoped that he was wrong. However, the thought that something was wrong wouldn’t disappear. Not after he had seen Nico’s expression the previous day. Of course Nico was always pale, but this time, it had been worse. And the boy had looked afraid. Will hadn’t seen that expression on Nico’s face since he had stayed in the infirmary for three days after the war with Gaea’s forces.

Back then, Nico hadn’t told Will what was bothering him. He suspected that it had something to do with the journey to Rome and the events there, or maybe with the Athena Parthenos. But he couldn’t be sure. He didn’t dare to ask Nico about it. And then it had seemed like Nico was doing better, like his fears had disappeared. So Will hadn’t thought about it anymore. But now it seemed as if it was coming back. Or was it something else yesterday?

With a sigh, Will sat down on the ground. It took him a few moments to realize that he was sitting on the beach. He touched the sand carefully and looked at the water in front of him. All those thoughts were going to make him crazy. He was so worried, not just because of his dreams and Nico. The things Nico had seen scared Will as well. What if they couldn’t stop the attacks on the camps? What if they were really going to lose this time?

“You should stop worrying so much, it doesn’t look good on you. I already thought you were sick or something like that.” A voice behind Will said and he turned around to see Percy standing in front of him. Did he just imagine it or was Percy Jackson awake before the rest of the camp? Will doubted that this ever happened before.

“Shouldn’t you be sleeping?” Will asked and raised his eyebrows.

To his surprise, Percy just laughed and sat down next to him. “I couldn’t sleep.” The son of Poseidon admitted.

“Me neither.” Will said and smiled slightly. “Too many thoughts in my head. And none of them seem to be good.”

Percy looked at him in silence for a few moments and Will began to feel uncomfortable. It was like Percy’s green eyes were looking directly into Will’s mind. Like he knew what he was worrying about. But should it surprise him after everything Percy had seen in his life?

“Did you sleep at all last night?” Percy asked, which surprised Will again.

He shrugged. “I had nightmares. And then I just lay in bed and thought about everything that happened and so on. I think you know that stuff.”

Percy ran a hand through his hair. It looked messy, like he didn’t pay attention to it after he got dressed. Or maybe it always looked like that, Will wasn’t so sure. Now the son of Poseidon was watching the water as well. “Better than you might think…” Percy muttered and for some time, they just sat there in silence. 

“You’re afraid that something might happen to Nico.” Percy said finally. Will had been lost in thoughts again and this question took him by surprise. He looked at Percy questioningly. “Come one, everyone knows that you always want to protect him. You love him, that’s obvious.” Percy turned to Will again, a serious expression on his face. “And he loves you too.”

Will swallowed. He didn’t talk to Nico about love yet. He loved Nico for quite some time now. And Will knew that very well. But could the son of Hades really love someone like him?

Percy didn’t seem to notice that Will was starting to feel uncomfortable. Or he just ignored it, you could never be sure with him. “He’s much stronger than you think.”

Will didn’t know what to say. Was he really sitting on the beach with Percy while the sun was rising? And why on earth did they talk about Nico?

“Don’t get me wrong. But sometimes, I’ve got the feeling that you’re treating him like he’s a child who needs someone to look after him. I know that you just want to protect him. But you can’t protect Nico from everything, after all he’s a demigod. And a powerful one as well. And most of all, you can’t protect him from himself.” Percy looked at him with that serious expression on his face again.

“I don’t treat Nico like he’s a child.” Will said finally. “I just don’t want him to overestimate himself. After the journey with the statue, he’s been so weak. I don’t want him to use his powers too much. He’s not ready yet. I don’t want him to get hurt.” Too late, he realized how weak his voice sounded.

Percy smiled sadly at him. “And what if you can’t prevent that? What if it will be necessary that he uses his powers on your quest?”

Will shrugged. “I’m sure there would be another way…”

“Stop that.” Percy interrupted him and Will was surprised by the tone of his voice. “Will, I know it’s hard for you, but you’ve got to accept that Nico can look after himself. He did that for many years.”

“And it didn’t end well, did it?” Will asked dryly.

Percy sighed. “He’s strong. Much stronger than when I first met him. And I think that he’ll get even stronger in the future. Maybe he’ll even get better than Jason or me.” Percy shrugged. “You shouldn’t forget one thing. You want to protect Nico, that’s no secret. Everyone knows that. And I think that Reyna will do everything to protect him as well. But shouldn’t you give Nico the chance to protect you as well?”

Will looked at the water again. Somehow, this conversation with Percy confused him even more than he already was. Was he too hard to Nico? Did it really look like he didn’t think that his boyfriend could look after himself?

“Maybe you’re right.” He admitted after some time. In the distance Will could hear the first campers leave their cabins. The others would be awake soon. “But it’s so hard to just let him do all those things. You know how sick he was after the war with the giants. I don’t want that to happen again. And there’s more, I think. Something Nico doesn’t tell me. But I don’t know what it is and I fear that he might get angry when I ask him…”

The uncomfortable expression on Percy’s face made Will suspicious. Percy knew something that Will didn’t. But what was it? And why did Percy know…

“I think you should ask him about it.” Percy said slowly. “When Nico’s ready to talk about it, he’ll tell you. I’m sure of that. You just have to be patient.”

Suddenly, Percy stood up. “We should go to breakfast, I bet the others are awake now as well. And don’t worry too much Will, I bet everything will end well.” Percy smiled at him once more and then he turned around and left.

Will followed him more slowly. This had been a strange conversation…


	15. The Riddle Is Solved

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

Nico woke up early that morning. He didn’t have bad dreams which surprised him. Normally, he was bothered by nightmares. Especially since the events of the previous days. He looked at his watch on the nightstand and sighed. It was not even six in the morning and far too early to stand up yet. However, Nico didn’t feel like he could sleep again. And just lying there wouldn’t help him either; it was his last day at Camp Half-Blood and there were still many things to do. Nico sighed and stood up.

A look through the window told him that most of the other campers were still asleep. There were only a few people walking through the Camp – mostly patrols to secure the borders – and they didn’t look very happy. Nico got dressed quickly – gray jeans and a dark blue t-shirt – and left his cabin. A few others looked at him in surprise. It was very unusual that the son of Hades left his cabin this early. Nico ignored the questioning looks they were giving him and walked through the camp silently. Sometimes, he nodded when other campers greeted him, but otherwise he didn’t say anything. He was lost in thoughts. They had to find out where to start their quest today. Tomorrow, they would go to Camp Jupiter and see Reyna. And then they would go on their journey to save both camps. 

To Nico’s surprise, Percy was already sitting at his table. He looked at his sandwich wearily and Nico wondered why he was already awake. However, you could ask yourself the same question about himself as well. Nico decided to ask Percy nonetheless.

“You look tired.” He said and sat down opposite Percy who used this moment to yawn.

“Good morning to you, too.” Percy muttered and blinked a few times. Slowly, a surprised expression appeared on his face. “Nico? Why are you awake? It’s like six in the morning.”

“Half past six.” Another voice corrected Percy and Nico didn’t have to turn around to know that Will was walking towards them. When the son of Apollo sat down next to him and touched Nico’s shoulder, he turned around. Of course his boyfriend looked great. However, there were dark rings under his eyes and it looked like Will didn’t sleep at all.

Will smiled at Nico – a tired smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “You are early.” Will noticed and Nico raised his eyebrows.

“And you look like you didn’t sleep last night.” He replied simply.

Now the smile on Will’s lips faded slowly. Nico’s boyfriend sighed. “That could be true.” Will admitted and ran a hand through his hair.

“Nightmares?” Nico asked and to his surprise, Will nodded. It just had been a guess, normally Will didn’t sleep bad. It was always Nico who dreamed the strange things. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No, it’s nothing.” Will said quickly and looked at his breakfast. Somehow, Nico had the feeling that something was bothering him. When he looked at Percy, there was a strange expression on his face. He was looking at Will.

“Did I miss something?” Nico asked slowly and raised his eyebrows again.

Percy opened his mouth to reply something, but he was interrupted by someone calling their names. Nico turned around to see Annabeth walking towards them, a wide smile on her lips. When she got closer, Nico noticed that she was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. Her hair was a complete mess and it looked like Annabeth didn't sleep as well. Nevertheless, her eyes were shining in triumph. Apparently, she had found something.

“Where do we go?” Nico asked without waiting for her to say something.

“London!” Annabeth exclaimed excitedly. She didn’t seem to be surprised by Nico’s question.

Next to him, Will grinned at Annabeth. “London? Why?”

Annabeth sat down next to Percy and glanced at him in confusion. She wasn’t used to him being awake that early. Suddenly, she looked from Percy to Nico and frowned. “Why are you so early?” She asked and both Percy and Nico shrugged.

“Couldn’t sleep anymore.” Percy muttered.

“Me neither.” Nico added.

Then Annabeth turned to Will and raised an eyebrow when she noticed how tired he looked. “Didn’t sleep at all?” She asked and he nodded.

Annabeth sighed. “Wonderful. The two boys who will go on that quest for us look like they’ll break down soon. You have to get some sleep tonight.”

“I’m not even tired.” Nico complained and Annabeth rolled her eyes.

“Have you looked into a mirror this morning?”

“I did.”

“And what did you see?”

“Me.”

“Did you look different than usual?”

Nico didn’t understand why she was asking all this. “No.”

Annabeth smiled slightly. “You see?”

It took him a few moments to understand what she wanted to tell him. Next to Annabeth, Percy chuckled and even Will smiled. However, Nico’s boyfriend didn’t laugh at this. He was grateful for that.

“London.” Nico interrupted them and they all got serious again.

“Yes, London.” Annabeth smiled. “It was easy, after all.”

“That’s good.” Percy muttered. He was chewing his sandwich and wrapped an arm around Annabeth’s shoulders. After swallowing, Percy cleared his throat. “And will you also explain what was easy?”

His girlfriend rolled her eyes and tried to look annoyed. However, there was an amused glance in her eyes. “I was about to do that when you interrupted me, Seaweed Brain.”

Percy ignored her statement. “Now tell us how you found out that they have to go to London.”

“The man in the suit with the hat.” Annabeth repeated Maria’s words slowly and nodded at Nico. “First, I thought it meant a special person. A man who did something important in history. Demigod history, if you want to call it like that. However, I found nothing in the old books with the tales.” She paused and looked into her tea. “They were mostly about Greece, of course. Demigods didn’t travel to England in the past, probably because it was too far away from home.” With home she meant Greece, Nico was sure of that. “So I decided to look somewhere else.” Annabeth continued. 

“Modern history?” Will asked and she nodded.

“Exactly.”

“Let me guess, Greece still didn’t have stories about a guy in a suit.” Percy threw in.

Annabeth nodded again. “If you wouldn’t interrupt me all the time, I could tell you how I found out that it is London.”

She looked around to see if they would interrupt her again. When no one said a word, she continued. “Modern history.” She repeated Will’s words. “You won’t believe how many men in suits have done special things in London. However, that seemed too easy. So I tried something else. Ancient and modern history weren’t the solution to this riddle. What if we were looking for someone who never did anything that was worth becoming history? Or if we were searching someone who is still alive?”

Nico leaned forward and from the corner of his eyes, he saw that Will did the same. Without thinking about it, Nico took his hand and squeezed it. Will looked from Annabeth to him and smiled; this time it reached his eyes and they were shining.

“I talked to Chiron about this. However, he didn’t know anyone in England. And he had no idea whom I could ask. Last evening, I had an idea. So I talked to Grover. Maybe we weren’t even talking about a human man, but about something else? Grover couldn’t help me as well. But someone else heard us talking about this. And it seems like Coach Hedge has a few friends in Europe. They like to play baseball. And one of these satyrs, who lives in London, owns a shop. He sells souvenirs and other small things you don’t really need. As a disguise, he always wears a suit and a hat. Otherwise, it would be too obvious what he really is. And last year, he moved from London, UK, to London, US.”

They all stared at her silently. Around them, more people were coming to eat breakfast. Annabeth was still smiling at them proudly.

After what seemed like hours to Nico, Percy shook his head. “A satyr. Seriously?” At the surprised tone in his voice, Annabeth’s smile faded slowly.

“Yeah, seems so. Or do you have a better idea?” She asked skeptically. When no one said something, she nodded. “I thought so.”

“That’s brilliant.” Will interrupted them. “Annabeth, you’re a genius!” Nico looked at his boyfriend and wanted to raise his eyebrows when Will squeezed his hand painfully tight and someone kicked his leg under the table.

“I don’t think that we would have ever found out about this without you.” Nico agreed with Will loudly. “Thanks to you we know where we have to start out quest!” He smiled at Annabeth and she looked at them for a few seconds uncertainly. Probably to make sure that they were serious about this. Then she relaxed and actually smiled back.

“Thank you, boys. It wasn’t easy to find out about this.”

Nico nodded. “I don’t think that anyone else would have been able to do it.”

“We would have never thought about asking the satyrs.” Will added.

Suddenly, Annabeth started to laugh. “Just because boys never really think something through.” She ran a hand through her hair and frowned. “I don’t know what you are going to do now, but I need a shower.” She looked questioningly at Nico and Will. “Will you tell the others about this?”

Nico nodded. “Of course. And we’ll inform Reyna and the others at Camp Jupiter as well.”

Annabeth smiled widely. “That’s great. I see you later.” She stood up and walked towards the Athena cabin without looking at Percy once more.

They exchanged glances and Percy narrowed his eyes. “It was not necessary to praise her that much.”

Will chuckled. “You shouldn’t have been so skeptical.”

“I don’t think that she’ll forgive you that quickly.” Nico laughed while Percy just sighed.

* * *

After breakfast, Nico and Will told Chiron about Annabeth’s discovery. To their surprise, Chiron wasn’t skeptical about the whole story. He just nodded thoughtfully and promised them to organize a council meeting that would take place at noon.

When their conversation with Chiron was over, they walked to the Hades cabin. Nico wanted to send an Iris message to Camp Jupiter immediately and since he was the only inhabitant of the cabin, they wouldn’t be bothered there.

Will held Nico’s hand while they made their way through the Camp. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. Nico closed his eyes and tried to imagine what this day would be like if there wasn’t someone who wanted to kill all the demigods. He would have a nice day with his boyfriend. Maybe there would be a game of capture the flag. And they wouldn’t get attacked like last time. They could just enjoy being together. Because that was exactly what Nico wanted. To have Will for himself. Something that wasn’t possible in times like this. 

“What are you thinking?” Will asked quietly and when Nico opened his eyes, he saw that he was watching him.

“I tried to imagine what it would be like to have no problems.” He admitted slowly when they entered his cabin.

Will looked surprised. “Not possible since we’re demigods.” He muttered and sighed. “But I know what you mean. I’ve been thinking about that as well.” Will sat down on the bed and gestured for Nico to sit down next to him. He did.

“We’re running from one problem to the next.” Will continued and wrapped his arms around Nico. “Sometimes, I fear that this will never end. The danger. The conflicts. The fights. War.” _Death_. Nico added in his thoughts. Will did not have to say it, Nico knew what his boyfriend was thinking. “We never really had time.” There was a sad expression on Will’s face now and Nico wanted nothing more than to make him look happy again. 

He smiled at Will and touched his cheek. “Don’t look so sad, Sunshine.” He whispered. “I’m sure that everything will be alright. Where is your positive attitude? Normally, I’m the one who’s always expecting the worst.”

Will leaned into his touch. “I’m sorry, Nico. I’m just afraid, I think. Tomorrow, we’ll start our quest. And no one knows what will happen.”

“Don’t apologize. It’s alright to be afraid sometimes. Everyone feels that way.”

Will frowned. “You too?” He asked hesitantly and Nico nodded.

“Of course. The first time I’ve been out there on my own, I had been terrified. But I didn’t have anyone who went with me. I was alone. And in Rome, I felt afraid as well. Until I met Percy and the others, I’ve also been there alone. When I was with the others, it was better. To know that someone is at your side and will fight with you, no matter what happens. And do you want to know why I don’t feel afraid this time?” He paused. Will was looking at him wide-eyed and Nico wanted nothing more than to kiss him right now. However, that would have to wait. “I will not be alone. We’ll go out there together. And Reyna will be with us too. The two people I trust the most will be there. That makes it much easier.” Will opened his mouth to say something, but Nico shook his head shortly. “I don’t want to say that you shouldn’t be afraid. Only fools are not. But you should know that we’ll get through this together. You are not alone in this, Will.”

Will was still looking at him with wide eyes and they were shining. Before Nico knew what was happening, Will’s grip around his shoulders tightened and he leaned in to kiss him. The kiss didn’t last long and when they pulled back, Will chuckled. “Since when are you so wise?”

Nico laughed. “I’m not. Believe me, I really don’t feel that way. I was just talking out of experience.”

Suddenly, the smile on Will’s lips vanished. “You shouldn’t have to.” He whispered and Nico sighed.

“Will –“ He muttered and hoped that he would just drop the theme.

“It drives me crazy. To know how alone you’ve been.”

“You can’t change the past, Will.” Nico said simply.

“I know.” Will shook his head. “That doesn’t mean that I have to like this. Everything that happened to you…”

“Hey, Will, look at me.” Nico touched Will’s cheek and forced his boyfriend to look at him. “I’m fine. And all those things are in the past. And it’s better if they stay there.”

“There are still things you didn’t tell me, right?” The question took Nico by surprise and he dropped his hands.

“What do you mean?”

“I can see it in your eyes, sometimes when you seem to be far away. Then something comes to your mind that makes you feel uncomfortable. You even look scared sometimes.” So he had not been able to hide it from Will. Nico had already expected this. His boyfriend used to notice everything. Of course Nico couldn’t hide Tartarus from him. But what should he do now? He was not ready to talk about this… Not with Will. With Percy, it was different. He had been there too. He knew what it was like.

“It’s nothing.” Nico whispered flatly.

“Nico…”

He shook his head and closed his eyes. “Please don’t.” He muttered. “I’ll tell you, one day. But not now, alright? I just can’t talk about it.” After some time, Nico dared to open his eyes again. He immediately wished that he wouldn’t have done it. The sad – no, the heartbroken expression on Will’s face made everything worse. And then Will hugged him tightly, like he never wanted to let Nico go. And Nico hoped that he wouldn’t.

They stayed like that for a long time and Nico felt himself relax in Will’s embrace. He knew that they should talk to Reyna at Camp Jupiter and tell her what Annabeth found out about their quest. And the council meeting would also take place soon. Nevertheless, Nico didn’t want to let go of Will. He wanted to enjoy this moment they had together. Who knew when the next time would be they could just be together, without worrying. Well, or without worrying about their lives being in danger, at least. 

“We should talk to Reyna, shouldn’t we?” Will asked and Nico sighed.

“Probably.” He agreed hesitantly and let go of Will. To his surprise, his boyfriend was smiling again.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you about this. I won’t do it again, I promise. It’s just… I hate it when you feel bad and I can’t help you, Death Boy.” The old nickname left his lips and Nico doubted that he noticed it.

“I have to apologize. I’ll tell you about it, I swear.”

“Whenever you’re ready.” Will said simply and smiled. Suddenly, Nico couldn’t hold himself back any longer and wrapped his arms around Will to kiss him.


	16. Last Day At Camp

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this chapter, please let me know!
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

“Alright, this sounds really crazy.” Clarisse said slowly and looked around. “Anyone here who agrees with me?”

All around them, people started to whisper quietly. They were in the big house again, together with the other members of the council. After Nico and Will had contacted Reyna at Camp Jupiter, they already had to leave the Hades cabin again for the council meeting at noon. Nico wasn’t happy that his time alone with Will had been interrupted again and he knew that Will felt the same, but they knew how important this meeting was. And everything that came after it. Reyna had been happy to get news of their quest, Nico didn’t miss the relieved look on her face, even if she tried to hide it. Most probably, she’d already expected that they wouldn’t have a clue where to start their search. And honestly, Nico had shared her fear until some time ago.

Now Nico exchanged a look with his boyfriend who was sitting next to him. Will just raised an eyebrow before he focused on the other council members to his left. Apparently, he wanted to listen to the conversation between Connor Stoll and Taylor, the head of the Hephaestus cabin. When Nico looked to his other side, he saw that Percy, Jason and Annabeth were frowning at Clarisse darkly. He agreed with them, this wasn’t the time to make anyone doubt the mission that was going to save them all. 

However, Clarisse spoke again before any of them could stop the whispers in the room. “Searching for a satyr in a suit in London, US.” She shook her head in disbelief and suddenly, a small smile spread on her lips. “This could really work.”

Slowly, it was getting quiet again and everyone stared at Clarisse, some of them in disbelief, others with a smile.

“You can’t be serious?” Taylor asked and crossed his arms. “This sounds like a bad joke, I can’t believe that this is going to save us all. I’m sorry, but don’t we have anything better?” At his last words, he glanced first at Nico and then at Annabeth. It was obvious that he was feeling uncomfortable while saying this, but Taylor was someone who always voiced his doubts.

“No, I fear we don’t.” Chiron declared loudly. “But this should be enough. After all, they know where to start the quest. Prophecies are never easy to understand. And with this one, it won’t be any different.”

“What if this isn’t a prophecy but a way to waste our time? To distract us so that the camp can be destroyed more easily. A way to make us let our guard down.” Someone muttered. When Nico looked around, he saw a small, red-haired girl. He didn’t know her name, though. She was the head counselor of a cabin of some minor god. And she looked directly at him.

Luckily, he was used to this kind of mistrust by now. Otherwise, he might have flinched or shown some other reaction. Like stiffening and looking at her angrily, just like Will, Percy and Jason did now. He placed a hand on Will’s leg under the table and hoped that his boyfriend would remain calm.

Nico decided to ignore the whispers all around them, just like Chiron’s attempt to make everyone fall silent again and cleared his throat. As before when Clarisse spoke, everyone fell silent in an instant. “Believe whatever you want.” He said loudly and looked directly at the girl. “I really don’t care what you think of me, all of you.” He added and looked around. To his surprise, only a few people were staring at him angrily. Most others rather looked uncomfortable or they were looking at the girl as well with not very friendly expressions on their faces. “But let me say it just this once. I would never make up something like this. Because Camp Half-Blood is not just your home, it’s also mine. And I will do everything to protect it.” The speech hadn’t been very long, and Nico noticed that some expectant looks were still directed at him, but he had nothing to add anymore.

Under the table, Will squeezed Nico’s hand and when he glanced at him, he saw that he was smiling widely. And was this a proud look on his face?

“Nico would never betray us.” Percy agreed loudly and a few others joined him immediately. “And now let’s stop this discussion, it won’t take us anywhere. We need to focus on the task at hand. And that’s deciding what we’re going to do while they’re on the quest.”

“Thank you, Percy.” Chiron smiled and looked around again. His gaze stayed on the red-haired girl a little longer before he continued. “We already decided to stay in contact with Camp Jupiter since they’ll be in danger as well. Frank and Hazel will take over the protection there, I’ve already offered them to take part in our council meetings and they agreed.” He glanced at Nico and Will who’d delivered that offer to them this morning. “We are not alone in this and no one should forget it.”

He continued to talk for some time, but Nico wasn’t really listening anymore. His thoughts wandered back to their conversation with Reyna. Even if they were going on a dangerous quest tomorrow, she really seemed glad to be able to see him again. And he couldn’t wait as well. It was strange, how the quest had tied them together. And Coach Hedge as well. Nico made a mental note to talk to him later and thank him for his help concerning the riddle.

After discussing the protection of the camp for what felt like hours, they finally changed the subject to the quest again. A look at the clock told Nico that they were talking for nearly two hours by now. He hoped that the meeting would end soon, he wanted to enjoy their last day at camp together with Will. From the looks Will threw at him from time to time, Nico knew that he thought the same.

“So you’ll just shadow travel to Camp Jupiter, get Reyna and then you’ll go to London?” Jason looked at them thoughtfully. “And where will you start your search once you’ve arrived?”

“In the city. From what we know, the satyr owns a souvenir shop.” Annabeth explained.

“I thought that was in the other London.” Percy frowned at his girlfriend and she rolled her eyes.

“Nope, he came to the states a few years ago. I talked to Coach Hedge again this morning. Apparently, he wasn’t happy back when he was still living in England.” She smiled triumphantly.

“I can understand him pretty well.” Someone muttered which earned him a few short laughs. However, they all got serious again very fast.

“And this satyr, who’s also a friend of Coach Hedge, is the one from the prophecy?” Connor didn’t sound convinced and frowned at them.

“A better idea where we should start?” Nico asked and crossed his arms.

“I thought so.” Annabeth whispered when Connor just looked at his hands on the table silently.

“Come on, guys. We all know that quests always start a little rough and no one understands prophecies. It will be fine.” Nico was surprised at the confidence in Percy’s voice.

“Besides, we have a great team.” Jason added and winked at them. “With Nico, Will and Reyna, the bad guys don’t stand a chance.”

“And of course we’ll stay in contact as often as possible.” Will added. “We’ll keep you updated about our steps.”

“I don’t think that you can just send us an Iris message every now and then.” Taylor said doubtfully. “Won’t that be too dangerous?”

Nico grinned. “There are other ways to deliver messages.” He explained and ignored Will’s accusing gaze. Slowly, it was getting tiring that his boyfriend always wanted to prevent him from using his powers. Nico was feeling completely fine again and somehow, he thought that he was even stronger than during their quest against the giants. They really had to talk about this again before they left the next morning.

“Oh no, not this creepy dream thing again, right?” Percy asked and grimaced. Luckily, this made Will turn away again and now he was frowning at Percy.

“What do you mean?” He asked curiously.

“Ask Nico. I swore to never talk about it again.” Percy muttered and exchanged a look with Nico.

“It was useful.” He said simply and shrugged. Many months ago, Nico had used his powers to appear in Percy’s dreams. Back then, he’d been on a mission alone and needed backup. This had been the only way to get help. The son of Poseidon still kept complaining about this.

Now Will turned his face to Nico again, but he shook his head slightly. He really didn’t want to talk about this right now.

“I think then we have everything settled for now.” Chiron said loudly. “We should continue as before. Nico, Will, I will see you tomorrow at the borders of the camp.”

Slowly, they all stood up and left the room. Outside, Nico breathed in deeply. This meeting had been exhausting. “Creepy dream thing, huh?” Will’s voice broke the silence.

He smiled slightly. “I think I’ve scared Percy to death back then.” Nico muttered and shrugged.

“No, you didn’t. You just caused me nightmares for weeks.” Percy grinned. “So please don’t do it with me again. You can take Jason.”

Next to him, Jason raised his eyebrows. “Why me?”

“I don’t want Annabeth to have nightmares.” Percy explained and she kissed him on the cheek.

“I love you.” Annabeth whispered loud enough for everyone to hear it.

When Jason glanced at Piper and opened his mouth, she held up a hand. “Don’t even think about it!” She glanced at Nico. “I like you very much, but I really don’t need you in my dreams.”

“No offense taken.” Nico smiled. “So it’ll be Jason.”

When Jason sighed in defeat, they all started to laugh loudly. However, their good mood didn’t last too long. One of Annabeth’s sisters ran towards them, breathing heavily. The panic in her eyes was obvious. “There’s been another attack!” She shouted. “At the south border! And something’s going on at the beach.” While saying that, she looked at Percy. “There’s something in the water and we don’t know what it is.”

“I’ll go to the south, you take the beach.” Jason said to Percy, who nodded with determination in his eyes. “Piper comes with me and Annabeth will join you.”

“I can deal with that on my own.” Percy shook his head and looked at Annabeth. “I think you’re needed in the south. I’ll just take the Stoll brothers with me.”

“We can also help.” Nico offered, but they all shook their heads.

“You need to relax. Tomorrow, you’ll need all your strength. We’ll be fine. Now go to your cabin and do whatever it is you’re doing there.” Annabeth protested loudly and then they all started running.

Will just wanted to follow them, but Nico grabbed his hand tightly. “I think they’re right, we should get some rest.” He said even if he didn’t like it. Everything in him screamed to help the others. “And your siblings are already on their way, Sunshine.”

After a few moments of hesitation, Will sighed deeply. “Alright, you win.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Back to your cabin?”

Nico shook his head. “I want to talk to Coach Hedge first.” He explained and headed for the forest. Will followed him and took his hand.

“You want to thank him.” It wasn’t a question. “And say goodbye.”

Sometimes, it still surprised him how good Will understood him. “Yes. After all, he gave the last clue for our quest.”

“And you like him.” Will noted.

Nico smiled slightly. “Can you blame me?”

He laughed. “No, Death Boy. Though it still surprises me that our most annoying satyr is one of your friends.”

“We’ve been through so much together.” Nico shrugged. “I assume that’s what did it, in the end.”

“And of course the baby.” Will smiled.

“Well, about that…” He felt uncomfortable around children and Will knew that very well. Every time they visited Coach Hedge and his family together, Will wouldn’t stop teasing him about this. Maybe it was because he was a son of Hades, god of the dead. Or Nico just wasn’t good at those things.

When Will started to laugh, his heart began to beat faster. He always had this effect on him. Suddenly, an image came to his mind. Will, lying on the ground, covered in blood. Was it really a good idea that he accompanied them on their quest?

Nico acted without thinking about it. He stopped, grabbed Will’s shoulders and kissed him fiercely. First, the son of Apollo stiffened, taken by surprise, but then he relaxed and kissed him back. When they finally parted, Will’s eyes were shining, but there was a frown on his face.

“I don’t want to complain, but what was this about?”

He swallowed. Should he tell Will about his fears? Nico just opened his mouth to reply when a loud voice called their names.

Silently, Nico thanked Coach Hedge for saving him from the uncomfortable conversation that would have followed.

“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be already out there, saving the world again?” Hedge asked curiously and crossed his arms. “I’ve heard that our time’s limited.”

“We’ll leave tomorrow.” Nico explained.

Hedge raised his eyebrows. “Hopefully after lots of sleep. You both look terrible.”

“That’s the plan.” Will agreed.

Hedge looked at Nico questioningly. “Nightmares?”

Nico nodded, knowing that he didn’t have to hide anything from him. After all, Hedge knew very much about his problems. “Always.”

Hedge sighed. “I know that feeling.”

“Where are Mellie and Chuck?” Nico changed the subject quickly. He didn’t like the way Will was looking at him again, with this frustration in his eyes.

“Gone.” Hedge said simply.

“What do you mean, they’re gone?” Will stared at him now, taken aback by his words.

“I’ve sent them away.” Hedge sighed unhappily. “For safety reasons. Annabeth explained to me how bad the situation is. And since the camp is their main target, I didn’t want them to be here. It’s too dangerous.”

“I bet Mellie wasn’t too happy about it?” Will guessed.

“She was angry.” He nodded. “Said if something happened to me, she would be furious and follow me into my next life, just to make it to hell.”

Nico chuckled. “I bet she would.” He could already picture it pretty well.

“You have to succeed in this quest.” Hedge said urgently. “This time, I’ll not be there to help you, kid.”

“But Will and Reyna will come with me. We’ll be fine.” Nico tried to calm him down.

Hedge sighed again. “I would love to come with you. We were such a good team the last time.”

“We were.” Nico smiled at the memories. Back then, it had been a painful time, but now he liked looking back at it. Well, on certain parts. Not on everything.

“Don’t overestimate yourself again, Nico.” He said it threateningly, but Nico could see the concern in his eyes.

“I’ll make sure that he’ll be fine.” Will threw in seriously.

For a few moments, Hedge looked at him through narrowed eyes, but then he nodded. “Be careful, this young man is quite a handful.”

Nico scowled at him. “You know that I can hear you pretty well?” He muttered and crossed his arms.

“I know.” Will said to Hedge and ignored Nico’s comment. “I will take care of him.”

“I can take care of myself.” At this, Will looked at him strangely, but the expression vanished so fast that he could also have just imagined it. “I’m completely fine again.”

“And your doctor doesn’t believe that.” Will muttered and luckily, Hedge stopped this conversation now. He insisted on showing them a new weapon with which he would help to defend the camp. It was a pickaxe.

“Where did you get that from?” They were both staring at him questioningly.

“I won’t give away my secrets.” Hedge grinned. “But don’t worry, I’ve also got my baseball bat. No monster will set a foot in this camp again!”

Nico and Will exchanged a look. Even if Nico had taken Will to his visits regularly in the past months, Coach Hedge could still puzzle his boyfriend easily. So he just shrugged now and hoped that Will would understand.  _He’s always like that_ the gesture said. 

Ten minutes later, they said goodbye to Coach Hedge. Not after promising to kill many monsters for him. And of course Nico should say hi to Reyna. And tell her that they would succeed in this quest, even if the dream team from last time wasn’t complete.

* * *

“I have to tell you something.” Nico said softly and next to him, Will looked up with a frown. It was in the afternoon and they were in the Hades cabin together, sitting on Nico’s bed.

“What do you mean?” He asked curiously and Nico also noticed the uneasiness in his voice. He had to admit that it may not have been the best choice of words to start a conversation.

“It’s nothing bad.” He threw in quickly. “Well, but it’s important. For the mission.”

Now Will’s eyes narrowed, but he remained silent.

Nico breathed in deeply, knowing that they had to talk about this now. Otherwise, it might cause many problems. “You can’t always prevent me from using my powers.”

As expected, Will started to protest. “You will overestimate yourself again, Nico. And it’s dangerous because you will –“

“It won’t happen again.” He interrupted him softly. “Will, you have to trust me with this. I know what I can do.”

“I’m sure you would have said the same last time.”

“Last time was different.” Nico sighed. “I’ve already been exhausted before this whole quest started.”

Will didn’t look convinced. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Without using my powers, that will happen.” He knew that it was unfair to say this and regretted it the moment he saw the concern in Will’s eyes, but Nico didn’t have another choice. He needed to convince Will that he shouldn’t always worry about him. “Then I can’t defend myself properly. You know that.”

Will closed his eyes. “I do.” He whispered quietly. “Doesn’t change the fact that I’m worried.”

“You always make it look like I’m weak.” Nico muttered darkly. “Like you have to take care of me. But Will, don’t you see that I’m not helpless?”

His eyes widened in horror when he realized the meaning of Nico’s words. “I don’t think that you’re weak!” He protested. “You can’t possibly think that, Nico.”

He crossed his arms. “And what is this all about? You freak out every time I do something. Even talking about using my powers makes you nervous.”

Will swallowed. “Nico…” He reached out for him, but in the last moment he seemed to decide that it wasn’t a good idea to touch Nico now. Which he didn’t like at all. He sat up and took Will’s hands in his.

“I’m not mad at you.” He whispered. “I just don’t want this to stand between us when we leave tomorrow. I will do what I have to, Will. And if that’s using my powers, or using them so that I’m exhausted afterwards, I will. I won’t fade again. I just know it. I can’t explain why.” He smiled slightly. “I’ve never felt stronger than right now.”

Again, there was this strange look on Will’s face.

“What are you thinking?” He asked.

“I talked to Percy.” Will muttered and sighed. “We met at the beach this morning. Seemed like we both couldn’t sleep. He told me that I should stop worrying because you can take care of yourself. And that I should give you the chance to protect us as well, not just the other way around.”

Nico stared at him. “Percy said that?”

Will nodded. “He’s confident that you can do all this.”

He knew that Percy would support him, but this was a surprise. That he defended Nico from Will. And it was a strange feeling to know that they’ve been talking about him at all. “And what do you say to his opinion?”

Will looked at their entwined hands. “I know that he’s right. But my heart doesn’t seem to understand it. I can’t stop worrying, Nico.”

“You have to, Will. Tomorrow, we’ll leave the camp. And we will have to fight together. We can’t work together properly if you don’t trust me.”

“But I do trust you.” He protested immediately.

“Then let me use my powers. And stop looking at me reproachfully afterwards. I know what I’m doing.” He forced Will to look into his eyes.

They looked at each other silently for a few moments. “Alright.” Will muttered in the end. “I’ll try.”

“Not trying, doing it.” Nico corrected him firmly. “We will get through all this together. Always remember that.”

Will nodded slowly. “Fine. But if it really happens that you overestimate yourself again, you have to do what I say. Doctor’s orders.”

“Won’t happen.” Nico muttered and rolled his eyes.

“Death Boy.” Will smiled charmingly. “Please?”

Nico groaned. “You’ll be the death of me, Solace.” Then he leaned in to kiss him. “Will you stay here tonight?” Nico asked once they parted again.

Will’s eyes widened. “But that’s not allowed.”

He grinned. “Would you care?”

Suddenly, Will’s eyes were shining with excitement and he smiled. “Alright, I’ll stay.”

Then they kissed again.


	17. Departure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the characters or places!

Nico

The next morning, Nico woke up early. First, he wasn’t sure where he was, but then he remembered the events of the previous day. And noticed that two arms were wrapped around his waist. He opened his eyes slowly and smiled when he saw that Will was lying next to him. Apparently, his boyfriend was still asleep, according to his closed eyes, the peaceful look on his face and his regular breathing.

Nico watched Will for some time and listened to the sound of his breathing. In this moment, it would be so easy to forget everything else that was going on. He would have loved just to stay here forever. In his cabin, together with Will. Unfortunately, a demigod would never be able just to lock out the world. Especially not someone like Nico, a son of the big three. Trouble was always going to find him.

When he thought of what was going to come, his heartbeat seemed to stop and an uneasy feeling appeared in his stomach. Today, they would start their quest. Will and Nico would leave the camp, together with Reyna, and then they would head out to find a way to end this war.

It wasn’t the first time Nico left the camp for a quest. He wasn’t afraid because of that, he knew that he could take care of himself. However, something was different now. This time, Will would accompany them.

Will Solace, who always managed to make him smile. Who made his heart beat faster. Who always saw the good in Nico. Will, Nico’s best friend and so much more. He would even say that Will was the most important person in his life now.

And it would destroy Nico if something happened to him.

Of course he should be used to death as a son of Hades, but it wasn’t that easy. Well, sometimes it wasn’t. When someone died who was close to you. Like Bianca. In the past years, Nico’s family had expanded. Back then, it had always been his sister and himself against the world. Now he had friends and even someone who loved him.

Wait a second, did Will love him? They’d never talked about love before and until now, Nico didn’t really consider this. Was he in love with Will Solace, a son of Apollo? When he thought of the way Will made him feel, Nico had to admit that it was possible. That he was falling in love.

Suddenly, he felt the urge to laugh. Nico di Angelo, the son of Hades, was falling in love! Love, something he never considered to be even possible for him. Because honestly, who could love someone like him? A child of the underworld who felt better around the dead than the living. However, that wasn’t completely true anymore.

When he thought of all the events that changed his life in the previous years, Nico always started to wonder. His journey had started alone, only with his sister. And now there were so many others who supported him. Not just Percy, Jason and their friends. Many others at Camp Half-Blood also seemed to like him now that he’d finally decided to open up to others.

And all those changes were caused by Will. Maybe a few of them had already been started by Percy and Reyna, but Will was the person who really changed him.

Again, Nico looked at his boyfriend who was still sleeping peacefully and his heart began to beat faster. He was so lucky to have Will in his life now. And sometimes, it was still hard to believe that Will had chosen him. Will, who was just so  _good_ , had chosen Nico, who wasn’t. He could never be completely good, that was obvious. Too many things were preventing that. Most importantly, his parentage. 

Thoughts of what was going to come entered his mind again and suddenly, Nico felt the fierce urge to protect Will from any harm. A part of him was glad that Will was going to accompany him on this quest, but another part would have loved just to lock him into the Hades cabin while he was gone, so that nothing could happen to him. He knew that it was stupid. After all, Will was also a demigod and this was also his battle to fight. But Nico was just so afraid that something might happen to him…

“I can hear your thoughts racing.” Will’s soft voice said slowly and then he blinked a few times before his eyes focused on Nico. “Why are you already awake? It must be still very early.” He glanced at the windows. “The sun didn’t even rise.”

Nico shook his head. “It’s nothing, I just couldn’t sleep anymore.” He whispered and hoped that Will wouldn’t ask any questions. But of course his boyfriend noticed immediately that something was wrong.

“Nico, what’s going on?” He asked and sat up in bed. There was a frown on his face now and Nico thought that he could see concern in Will’s eyes.

“Today, we’re going to leave.” Nico muttered, knowing that it was of no use to lie to Will now.

“And you’re worried that something might happen to Reyna or me.” Will concluded and again, Nico was surprised at how well his boyfriend knew him already.

“Just like you are worried that I’ll get hurt.” He replied, remembering their conversation about Nico’s powers the previous evening.

“Nico, that’s just normal.” Will wrapped his arms around Nico’s shoulders and pulled him closer. “After all, we’re going on a quest and no one knows what will happen.”

“I know.” He sighed. “It’s not like I wouldn’t have been out there before.”

“So what’s bothering you now?” Somehow, Nico suspected that Will already knew the answer to this question.

“You already know the answer, Sunshine.”

Will chuckled softly. “You don’t have to do everything alone.”

“Everyone keeps telling me that.” Nico nodded. “But it’s easier if there’s only the possibility that I might get hurt.”

“You shouldn’t think of yourself like this.” Now Will sounded serious. And unhappy. “Your life isn’t worthless.”

“I’ll do everything to protect you.” He said immediately. “That’s more important.”

Will let go of Nico’s waist and suddenly, his hands were on Nico’s shoulders. In one swift movement, he pushed him onto the mattress and moved so that he was straddling him. Now they could look into each other’s eyes and Nico saw the stern look on Will’s face. “Don’t say that.” He spat and breathed in deeply. “Our lives aren’t more important than yours. Can’t you see that there are so many people who care for you? That I care for you?” At his last words, an incredible sadness appeared on Will’s face. It nearly broke his heart to know that he caused it.

“I know that you’re used to do things alone. But Nico, it’s not like this anymore. It’s the two of us against the world, remember?” When he said this, his eyes were shining.

After a few moments of hesitation, Nico nodded. “I’m afraid, Will.” He admitted and ran his hands down Will’s chest. “I can’t lose you.”

Will’s expression softened. “And you think that I can lose you, Death Boy?” He leaned down and kissed Nico softly.

However, soft was the last thing he needed in this moment. He grabbed Will’s shirt and pulled, closing the last distance between their bodies. Then he swallowed Will’s surprised gasp with his lips and kissed him passionately while he shoved his hands under Will’s t-shirt. For half a second, Will stiffened, but then he relaxed with a sigh. When they pulled back after some time, Will looked him searchingly. “Are you sure, Nico?”

Nico smiled at him. “Yes.” Apparently, Will didn’t need another confirmation since he kissed him again passionately.

* * *

A few hours later, they were standing in front of the big house. Will was just looking through their backpacks while Nico checked his sword of stygian iron he was carrying on his belt now. If there was a fight, he would be able to draw it easily. Next to him, Will stood up and listed all the things that they would take on their quest. It looked like they didn’t forget anything.

In the distance, Nico saw the others approaching them. But for now, they seemed to have a few more moments for themselves. When Nico exchanged a look with Will, he saw that his boyfriend was blushing slightly. He grinned and took a step towards him. “What’s going on, Sunshine?” He whispered into his ear and his grin got even wider when he noticed that Will shivered. However, he gained control again very fast.

“It’s nothing.” Will replied softly and his gaze wandered to Nico’s sword. “I really hope you won’t need that.”

“Would be too easy.” Nico muttered and squeezed Will’s hand. “But it’ll be fine. I’m sure of that.”

“Good morning guys, I hope you slept well!” Jason greeted them loudly. “You’ll need all your strength on this quest.” Only now Nico noticed that only Jason, Percy and Annabeth showed up to say goodbye to them. All the others were missing.

He frowned. “Where’s Piper?”

“She’ll join us soon.” Jason said. “They’re patrolling the borders.”

Next to him, Will raised his eyebrows. “Did something happen?”

“No, everything’s fine.” Annabeth explained. She was looking tired. “Even if it’s been a long night.”

“We’ve been watching the waterside at night.” Percy added when he saw Nico’s curious glance.

“You’ve been waiting for an attack.” Nico muttered and it wasn’t a question. He could see it from the looks on their faces.

“Something’s off.” Percy muttered, suddenly looking distracted. “I can feel it when I’m close to the water. I just don’t know what it is. Tyson is also looking for something. He can sense the danger as well.”

“No one to ask for advice there?” He raised his eyebrows.

Percy sighed. “I’ve been thinking of that too. But no, nothing. It’s nearly as if the Long Island Sound is empty. No living thing there anymore.”

“That doesn’t sound good.” Will whispered and moved closer to Nico. Somehow, he doubted that his boyfriend even noticed it.

“We’re already trying to find a solution.” Annabeth threw in. “That’s why we’ve been waiting there.”

“You can’t watch the water every night.” Will frowned at them. “You really need some sleep.”

“I can’t stay away from there for too long.” Percy sighed. “I’m the only one who can really do something.”

“Just don’t overestimate yourself.” Will said slowly. “It won’t do any good if you’re too exhausted to fight.” He looked from Percy to the others. “All of you.” Nico already waited for him to add the usual ‘doctor’s orders’, but this time, Will remained silent after his words.

“We’ll be fine.” Jason said sternly. “You should rather focus on your quest. I bet it’ll be far more difficult than the defence of the camp.”

“And besides, we’ve got very clever people here to organize everything.” Percy added and winked at Annabeth. To Nico’s surprise, she rolled her eyes and a small smile appeared on her lips. Then she grabbed Percy’s shirt, pulled him closer and kissed him.

When it became obvious that Percy and Annabeth wouldn’t stop kissing any time soon, Nico turned to Jason. “Be careful.”

“That’s my line.” Jason complained half-heartedly. But then he sighed and suddenly, he looked really troubled. Nico was surprised how good he could just ignore the couple that was making out right next to him and focus on the situation at hand. “I really mean it. This won’t be easy.”

“When has anything ever been easy?” Nico crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. “You should know well enough that things are always complicated for us.”

“He’s right.” Another voice cut in and they all turned around to see Piper walking towards them. Nico was glad to see that her arrival had also distracted Percy and Annabeth. Piper was looking tired when she stopped next to Jason and they exchanged a small smile. Then she turned to Will and Nico. “You have to contact us as often as possible.”

“We will.” Nico nodded and to his surprise, she hugged first him and then Will tightly.

“I see that you are ready to leave.” Now Chiron joined them as well, together with a few other campers. Nico saw Clarisse among them.

“We told Reyna we’d be there soon.” Nico nodded.

Chiron looked at them thoughtfully. “I think I don’t have to explain to you that you should be careful on this quest, Nico. You’ve been out there on your own far too often.”

“We’ll be fine.” He nodded.

“You have to look out for each other.” Chiron said to both of them. “This quest will only succeed when you stay together.”

“I won’t let him out of sight.” Will muttered quietly and Nico wondered if anyone next to him had heard those words. It didn’t look like someone noticed it.

“Together with Reyna, they’ll be a very good team.” Jason said confidently. “They will succeed.”

“They have to.” Now Chiron sounded serious.

“No pressure.” Someone whispered and another person laughed breathlessly, nearly afraid, but Nico couldn’t make out who it was that fast. He was still focusing on Chiron.

“Out there, you will face dangers you haven’t seen before.” _Even you haven’t seen them before, Nico_ the way Chiron looked at him now seemed to say. “You have to stay together. And I can only advise you to solve all unspoken troubles that stand between you before the dangerous situations take place.” 

At this, Will frowned at Chiron in confusion. However, Nico knew what he was talking about. Someday, he would have to tell Will about Tartarus and what he’d seen there. After all, it still bothered his boyfriend that he was keeping this from him, even if he might not remember that in this moment, right before they would leave for their quest.

“Next to that, you have to act fast. We don’t know how much more time is left until the next attack on the camp will take place.” Luckily, Chiron continued to talk without pausing. Nico didn’t want Will to ask anything right now. Nevertheless, he already knew that he would want to know what Chiron meant soon. “Stay away from unnecessary trouble, try not to be noticed and use your powers carefully. Our enemy will surely know by now that we’ll send someone to stop him. His servants will look for you.” 

“We can deal with them.” Nico said simply and glanced at Will. He was also looking determined.

Chiron nodded thoughtfully. “Then you should leave now. And don’t forget that the time is limited. We can’t stand against them forever.”

At this, Nico took a step back and whistled loudly. It didn’t take long until Mrs O’Leary came running towards them, an attentive look on her face. All around Nico, the others were walking out of her way now, afraid that she might just run them over, but he didn’t move. Next to him, Percy and Will also remained standing. However, Will didn’t look as calm as Percy.

About half a meter in front of them, Mrs O’Leary suddenly stopped and sat down. Just to stretch out her tongue and lick Percy’s face.

“Uh, why did you do that?” Percy complained loudly when Nico and Will started to laugh, followed by a few others.

“I doubt that she’ll answer you.” Nico grinned. After all, Percy could just talk to horses.

“She seems to like you.” Will noted with a gleam in his eyes.

“She prefers Nico.” Percy muttered and tried to clean his face with his shirtsleeve. “Why doesn’t she do this to you?”

“I told her not to.” Nico was still grinning, but then he got serious again. “We’ll find out who’s responsible for all this.” It sounded like a promise and he hoped that they could keep it.

“I’m sure you will.” Percy said and there was no doubt in his voice. “And Nico? Do what you have to do. You are strong enough, never doubt that.”

“Thank you, Percy.”

Nico gestured for Mrs O’Leary to lay down and then he climbed on her back, followed by Will. “It’s better if you close your eyes. The first shadow travel can be disturbing.”

“I’ll be fine.” Will said simply and then Mrs O’Leary jumped towards the next shadow.

* * *

“I told you to close your eyes.” Nico said and knelt down next to Will, feeling worried. “Are you sure that you’re alright?”

“I will be if you stop acting like I’ll die soon, Death Boy.” Will muttered quietly. He was sitting in the grass, his head between his knees.

“You looked like you’d throw up any second.” Nico noted.

“Doesn’t mean that I’m dying.” Will sighed.

“I know. So far, no one’s died from shadow travel. If it makes you feel better, Percy also got sick after his first time.” He tried to cheer him up.

“It doesn’t.” When Will looked up again, he wasn’t that pale anymore. “And I’m fine.” He tried to stand up again and Nico offered him his hand. To his surprise, Will took it without complaining. Then he looked around carefully and Nico thought that he could see disappointment on his face.

“Camp Jupiter is not far away.” He explained. “We decided that it would be better to meet outside its borders. Reyna doesn’t want us to frighten the Romans.”

“Pity. I really wanted to see their camp. You told me so much about it.” Will said.

“We can travel there when everything is over.” Nico offered immediately. “I bet you’ll like it.”

“Of course, after all, our camp is better than yours!” A loud voice called and Nico turned around abruptly. Three people were walking towards them, all grinning widely.

“Hey Nico!” Hazel called and then they hugged each other tightly. When they parted, she looked at him sceptically. “You’re taller than before.” She noted and he rolled his eyes.

“Whatever.” He muttered, but now she grinned.

“It suits you. I bet you’ll be quite handsome someday.” The last sentence she whispered right into his ear and he was glad that the others couldn’t hear it. “Of course that doesn’t mean that you aren’t already.” She added hastily and then she blushed, which made him laugh loudly.

“You look happier.” Frank noted when Hazel turned to Will.

“I am.” Nico agreed and glanced at Will.

“And that’s good.” Now Reyna stepped forward and smiled at him. “You deserve happiness, Nico.”

“We all do.” He threw in and then they also hugged each other.

When they were finished with greetings, they formed a small circle. “Did you just come here to see us?” Nico asked curiously.

“And to say goodbye to Reyna.” Frank added. “After all, we’ve got to run the camp without her now.”

“You’re perfect for the job. I told you that a thousand times by now.” Reyna replied.

“There’s something else.” Hazel interrupted their conversation uncomfortably. “I had a dream.”

Nico caught the meaning behind her words. “You think something bad is going to happen?”

“Something worse than the war?” Will muttered darkly, but Hazel just ignored his question. Her eyes were fixed on Nico now.

“I saw you, Nico. In a cave, alone. It was a really big one, similar to the one in your dreams. You were in chains.” Her voice was shaking slightly. “It looked like they were torturing you.”

Nico ignored Will’s horrified gasp next to him and frowned at his sister. “Who?” He asked curiously. “Could you see anyone?”

She shook her head. “He didn’t have a face.”

He nodded slowly, taking in the information. “It was just a dream.” He tried to sound lightly, even if he knew that it was a lie. Dreams like this had a habit of coming true. “Don’t worry.”

“We shouldn’t be worried?” Will asked instead of Hazel, who also knew that they couldn’t do anything against that dream right now.

“You know that our dreams are sometimes nothing more than that. A product of our imagination.” Nico explained, but he took Will’s hand and squeezed it. “Nothing will happen to me. We decided to stay together, remember?”

Will didn’t look happy, but he nodded. Then he turned to Reyna. “Are you ready to leave?”

“Of course.” She said immediately. “And Nico is right, that dream doesn’t have to mean anything. We will stay together, no matter what happens.”

“We’ll stay in contact with Camp Half-Blood.” Hazel informed them. “The camps are in this together.”

“Keep patrolling the borders. And stay attentive.” Nico advised them.

“Always.”

The second time that day, they climbed on Mrs O’Leary’s back. “To London, US.” Nico told her and she barked, just like she’d understood his words. And then she jumped into the shadows.


	18. The Groovy Hoofy Shop

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's a new chapter! I hope you like it, please let me know! 
> 
> I don't own the characters or places!

Will

He hated shadow travelling. There was no other way to describe it. He simply hated it.

After the second time, Will didn't feel that sick anymore, but that didn't mean it was enjoyable. He wasn't surprised to see that Reyna looked just as comfortable as Nico. After their journey with the Athena Parthenos, it was only logical that she was used to this kind of travelling now.

“Was it better this time?” Nico asked and raised his eyebrows at him.

He nodded slowly. “A little bit. Doesn't mean I like it, though.”

“You'll get used to it.” Reyna said. “It's not so bad after all. And with Mrs. O'Leary it's even easier than with Nico.”

Nico crossed his arms and glared at Reyna. “What does that mean?”

“You can save your strength.” She said simply. “So we don't have to worry about you all the time.”

“Last time was different.” Will's boyfriend argued. “I was already exhausted before the whole journey started. This time, I'll be fine. And besides, we won't be able to travel with Mrs. O'Leary much longer. She's far too noticeable. I'll send her back to Camp Half-Blood soon.”

Reyna looked at Nico through narrowed eyes for a few moments before she nodded. “Alright, I believe you.” And as easy as that, the subject seemed to be settled for them. Will decided not to say anything else right now. Not after all the discussions he already had with Nico concerning his powers. He'd promised him not to worry so much anymore.

Instead, Will looked around. They were standing between a few trees and in the distance, he could see buildings. Apparently, that was London.

“It's not that impressive.” He noticed that Nico sounded disappointed.

“What did you expect?” Will asked curiously.

“I don't know. But it's called London. Shouldn't it be bigger or something like that?” Nico asked and shrugged.

“Maybe it's better if the town's small.” Reyna threw in thoughtfully. “Will make it easier to find the friend of Coach Hedge.” Nevertheless, Will thought that he could also hear disappointment in her voice. “Where will we start?”

“Coach Hedge couldn't give us an address.” Will explained. “But he was sure that his friend would stay close to downtown. 'Where all the action is' were his words, I think.”

Next to him, Nico nodded. “If the town's small, it shouldn't take long to find him.”

In the end, it turned out that they were wrong about this. London, US wasn't a small town and they also didn't see any satyrs. In fact, every part of that town looked the same and soon, they were lost. Will noticed that Nico also looked disappointed because the city didn't have any sights, unlike the other London.

While they were walking, he took his hand and squeezed it. At this, Nico smiled slightly.

“Couldn't you have just summoned that chauffeur of yours, Nico?” Reyna asked after a while. They'd been walking through the city for hours now. “Would have saved us lots of walking.”

Nico nodded. “I could, but I didn't expect this city to be this big.” He frowned and Will knew that he was unhappy because he didn't have that idea sooner. “Now it's too late anyway.”

Reyna shook her head. “It's never too late to get into a comfortable, air-conditioned car. It's far too hot here!”

Will noticed that something had caught Nico's attention and when he followed the gaze of his boyfriend, he knew what he meant with it being too late to get into a car. “I think Nico wants to say that we're there.” He told Reyna and gestured at a small shop close by.

It was a very small building not too far away from downtown. However, it looked rather like an apartment building than a real shop. That's also why none of them had noticed it first. Only a small sign above the door told them that they might have reached their destination. _The groovy hoofy shop._

“What kind of name is that?” Nico asked incredulously. 

“It doesn't look like a souvenir shop.” Reyna added. “It's in this side street and no one notices it.” 

“Unless you're looking for it.” Will added thoughtfully. They walked towards the shop and noticed that there was a small window next to the door. In there, they could see all kinds of silly souvenirs. From small statues of the Big Ben or the London eye over a waving queen to a map of the London tube, everything was there. 

“Well, that really looks like a souvenir shop.” Nico noticed slightly. “Do we really have to go in there?” 

“Unless you already want to give up before the quest really started...” Will muttered, even if he also wasn't eager to enter that place. 

“Did Coach Hedge tell you anything about his friend?” Reyna asked curiously. 

“Only that he's crazy.” Nico said. “And that he'll never tell us anything if we don't buy a souvenir.” 

“Aren't all satyrs crazy?” Reyna muttered and looked at the shop with a frown. “So we'll just go in?” 

“Why not?” Will asked. “We've got nothing to lose, right? After all, this is the place where we have to start the quest.” 

“But what will we say?” She threw in. They'd discussed this on their way, but they still weren't sure. 

“Maria said the spirits will help us.” Nico said suddenly. “Maybe he knows something about them.” 

“Worth a try.” Will agreed immediately, glad to have an idea. 

“Then let's go.” Reyna said and entered the shop. 

Nico and Will exchanged one last look before they followed her inside. 

* * *

Inside the shop, it was pretty dark and uninviting. The room was small and the air sticky. There were far too many souvenirs on too little space and Will didn't know where to look first. Apparently, the others felt the same since they were turning uncomfortably. 

“Doesn't surprise me that he had to move away from the other London.” Nico whispered quietly and Will nodded in agreement. If the shop had been like this in the other London as well, it wasn't a surprise why the satyr needed a new location. 

“Hello?” Reyna called and looked around searchingly. “Is anyone here?” 

After a few moments, they heard footsteps on the stairs, together with a few muffled curses. The footsteps didn't belong to a human. It had to be the satyr. “Of course I'm here! Otherwise, the door would have been closed.” 

A small figure appeared in the doorway. He was wearing a far too big suit and a top-hat. In the shadows of the room, he nearly looked like a normal man. Now Will realized why it was so dark in the shop! This way, it was easier for the satyr to hide. 

He leaned on the counter and looked at them, even if they couldn't see his face in the shadow of the hat. “You're not tourists.” He noted. 

“No, we're here to talk to you.” Nico explained. While doing that, he took half a step forward, which showed his sword of stygian iron. 

“Demigods.” The satyr muttered now. “I hate demigods! You always cause trouble, nothing else! How did you even find this shop?” 

“We're not here to cause trouble.” Reyna threw in quickly. 

“Then why are you so heavily armed?” The satyr demanded to know and crossed his arms. “Get out of here! I won't tell you anything!” 

“It is just a simple question, we don't want to cause you any harm.” Will said now and smiled at the satyr. “We're here because a mutual friend thought you could help us.” 

“I don't know what you're talking about.” He muttered angrily. “Now leave my shop of this will end badly for you.” 

“The friend also told us that you have the most beautiful souvenir shop in the whole city.” Reyna changed her tactic. “It's true, you have amazing things in here!” 

This really caught his attention and he looked up at her. Now they could see his face. He was really old and Will wondered why he even still had this shop. “Thank you very much, young lady.” The satyr said now. “I know that I have a quite interesting collection.” 

“That's true.” Reyna looked at the souvenirs. “I always wanted one of this.” She pointed at a small London Eye. 

“The maps are even better.” Will threw in, knowing what Reyna was doing. 

“No, the tea cups.” Nico had also understood it. 

Soon, they were discussing which souvenirs were the best and the satyr relaxed slowly. “May I ask which friend of mine told you about my fabulous shop?” 

“Gleeson Hedge from Camp Half-Blood.” Nico explained. 

Now the satyr raised his eyebrows. “Does he still have that baseball bat?” 

Nico nodded. “And a pickaxe too.” He added. Will had to stop himself from grinning when he thought of that. 

The satyr rolled his eyes. “He's always been quite strange concerning that. For my liking, he's far too brutal.” He sighed. “My name is Charlie.” Will thought that Charlie was an unusual name for a satyr, but he didn't voice his thoughts. 

“It's nice to meet you, Charlie.” He replied with a smile. “I'm Will and those are Reyna and Nico.” 

“All demigods from Camp Half-Blood, hm?” Charlie asked slowly. 

“No, I'm from Camp Jupiter.” Reyna explained. 

“A Roman?” Charlie's eyes widened slightly. “On tour with two Greeks? And then you also know Gleeson Hedge...” 

“Actually, he's a friend of ours. We were on a quest with him some time ago.” 

“Don't tell me the one with that statue?” Charlie asked resignedly. Apparently, he already knew that story. 

“Yes, that.” Nico raised his eyebrows. “I assume he's told you this?” 

Charlie nodded. “We met some time ago.” He grimaced. “Far too much violence in that story for my liking.” His expression turned suspicious. “If I think about it again, demigods are always responsible for lots of trouble. Now I've got three right in front of me.” Again, his eyes wandered to Nico's sword and then to Reyna. “Oh no, you're really the two who were on that quest with him?” 

They both nodded silently. 

He stared at Nico. “You're a son of the underworld.” He noted. 

“We really don't want to cause trouble.” Nico threw in quickly. “We're on a quest. Both our camps are in danger and we have to find the one who is responsible for that.” 

“Well, then good luck, but I can't help you.” Charlie crossed his arms. “I don't know anything about destroying camps or whatever it is that people are doing these days. I am a simple owner of the best souvenir shop in London, nothing else.” 

“We're looking for spirits.” Will said hastily. “Someone told us that they can help us.” 

If he wouldn't have looked at him closely, Will was sure that he'd missed the small flicker of surprise on Charlie's face. 

“I don't know anything about spirits.” He said simply. 

“You do.” Will argued. “I saw it from the look on your face.” 

“This is really important for us.” Reyna said in her best pleading voice. “You would be a very big help.” 

“People would remember your name for a long time. Maybe they would even come to your shop.” Nico added. 

“It's just a rumour.” Charlie shook his head. “Nothing of importance.” 

“Everything can be of importance for us.” Will said. “Please tell us what you know.” 

Charlie frowned. “That would have a price.” 

“You want us to buy souvenirs.” He concluded. 

“And you have to tell your friends about the shop. Maybe I even have a few posters. Then you can show them around at your camps.” Suddenly, the satyr was grinning like a child and vanished behind a door. 

They exchanged looks. “I can't wait to get out of here.” Nico muttered. 

“We have to be nice to him.” Will reminded his boyfriend. 

Nico rolled his eyes. “I know. But do we really have to take the posters?” 

“I fear we do.” Reyna grimaced.

Soon, Charlie came back with two big posters. He was still grinning. “It will be awesome to have more customers! Even if they'll mostly be demigods. Tell your people that they should only come here in times of peace. I don't want any monsters close by.” 

“We will.” Will promised when he took the posters and folded them neatly. 

“So now about the spirits.” Nico raised his eyebrows. “What do you know?” 

Charlie looked around to make sure that no one was listening to their conversation. Which was kind of unnecessary since the shop was empty except for them. “It is rumoured that a group of spirits has gone crazy not too far away from here.” 

“What kind of spirits?” Reyna asked curiously. 

“Water spirits.” Charlie explained. “They live in a lake, hidden in a big forest. No one goes there and for some time, no one would even dare to do it. Everyone who tried just vanished. It's dangerous.” 

Nico sighed. “Water spirits. Just great.” 

“We'll be fine.” Will hoped he sounded optimistic. 

“Do you really believe that, Sunshine?” Nico whispered so that only Will could hear him. Apparently, Nico had noticed his insecurity since he nodded. “I thought so. Maybe we should have brought Percy.” 

“We can deal with a few spirits.” Reyna said simply and asked Charlie for a route description to the lake. 

When they finally left the shop, they were all carrying various souvenirs. He'd even managed to give Reyna a cap with 'I love London' on it. She took it off as soon as they were a few streets away. The cap and the souvenirs landed in the next trash can. 

“It will take a few hours until we arrive at the lake.” Reyna explained. “We won't make it today. Maybe we should camp somewhere out of town and walk there tomorrow.” 

“Good idea.” They agreed immediately. 

“Do you want to know what's strange?” Reyna asked when they'd left the town. “We didn't see any monsters today.” 

“Don't say that.” Nico muttered. “You know that it causes trouble.” 

“Don't be so pessimistic, Nico.” Will scolded him softly. 

“I'm not. It's called realistic.” Nico glared at him. 

“Nothing happened yet.” In the moment Will said this, the silence around them was interrupted by a loud cry which wasn't human. 

“There! You see? It causes trouble!” Nico shouted and drew his sword. 

“I'm sorry!” Reyna reached for her weapon as well. 

Will took the daggers Nico had given him back at camp and hoped that he'd be able to defend himself with them. He hated fighting with weapons. But sometimes, it couldn't be avoided. 

It was already getting dark, which didn't make it any easier to see the dark monsters running towards them. “Stay by my side.” Nico commanded and his voice was deadly serious. Will remembered their conversation this morning. Nico was worried for his safety. 

Then the first monsters were there and Will couldn't continue thinking about that any longer. Luckily, the monsters weren't the fastest and Will was able to defend himself easily. However, more and more monsters were getting closer and soon, they were surrounded. 

“What are we going to do now?” Reyna called. 

“I've got an idea!” Nico shouted back at her. “But you have to trust me!” 

“We do!” Reyna replied without hesitation. Will could only glance at Nico shortly, but then his boyfriend already vanished in the shadows. He tried to fight the panic that was going to overtake him. Nico was fine, he wouldn't face again once he used his powers. Will had promised to trust him. 

He had to concentrate very hard to keep fighting the monsters and not let the worry overtake him. Now Will was standing back to back with Reyna, who was swinging her sword fiercely. “What's taking him so long?” Will asked and couldn't keep all the worry from his voice. 

“I bet he'll be back soon!” Reyna muttered. 

Then there was a loud whistle. Nico was running towards them, his sword raised. And right next to him came Mrs. O'Leary. Will noticed that Nico was surrounded by shadows, but he forced himself to concentrate on the battle at hand. It didn't last long anymore. Soon, all the monsters were sent back to Tartarus. 

Will was surprised that he wasn't injured after this battle. A glance at Reyna showed him that she was unharmed as well. 

“Are you alright?” Nico asked and came closer, Mrs. O'Leary following him like a shadow. 

“Shouldn't we ask you about that?” Will asked, his voice a mixture of relief and worry. 

Nico grinned. “I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me, Will. I didn't even do anything. I just got Mrs. O'Leary.” 

“You shadow travelled and used your powers to defend those monsters.” Will corrected him softly and took Nico's hands. They were warm and everything felt perfectly fine. Only now he was able to relax again and pulled Nico closer. 

“I already told you that you shouldn't worry.” Nico whispered and kissed him. 

“I know.” Will sighed. “Give me some more time.” 

“You know that we might not have that.” Nico reminded him softly. 

“I do. But don't overestimate yourself, Death Boy. Doctor's orders.” 

At this, Nico started to laugh. “I love you.” 

“I love you too.” Will whispered and leaned in to kiss him again. 

“Um guys, it's good that you're so happy right now, but maybe we should move?” Reyna interrupted them. “We should change our location for the night.” 

“Maybe Mrs. O'Leary can already get us closer to that lake.” Nico suggested. 

“But not too close, please.” Will threw in. “I don't want to meet the spirits tonight.” 


End file.
